LEXINGTON, Ky.—Project partners HOK, Turner Construction and JRA Architects were on hand for a recent groundbreaking ceremony for the University of Kentucky’s new Health Education Building. The 500,000-square-foot structure, to be located at the intersection of Huguelet and University drives, will be home to the university’s programs in nursing, health science, public health, as well as the Center for Interprofessional and Community Health Education.

The Health Education Building will entail two wings, one with eight floors and the other with 10. In addition to classrooms and learning spaces, the building will feature modern simulation facilities so that students can experience real-world healthcare scenarios. The building will entail brick and glass for the north wing as well as a glass front for the south wing to allow in sunlight. Other architectural design elements include a “basketweave” façade and a glass lantern design at the building’s northeast corner.

When completed in 2026, the Health Education Building will be able to increase the number of students educated in the College of Medicine to 200 per year, one of the largest medical programs in the United States. The College of Nursing will also double its enrollment, offering both a bachelors of science in nursing (BSN) and an advanced BSN program as the Bluegrass State continues to deal with a shortage of healthcare workers. Meanwhile, the College of Health Sciences will offer programs in language pathology, physical therapy, athletic training and medical laboratory science for over 400 students, and the College of Public Health will be able to increase its student complement by 30 percent in both its graduate and undergrad programs.

The layout of the facility is meant to encourage collaboration between various classrooms and learning spaces.

The $380 million construction project’s funding was authorized by the Kentucky General Assembly and approved by the UK Board of Trustees last summer.

“As a testament to our collaborative spirit, this one facility will contain programs from four colleges and the Center for Interprofessional and Community Health Education. We will educate students for a new healthcare future, collaborate through transdisciplinary work, and attract and retain the best and brightest to advance Kentucky,” said UK President Eli Capilouto at the groundbreaking. “Our goal—our promise—is that when our students complete these programs and join the workforce, they are well-equipped to face today’s complex challenges and help all Kentuckians live longer and healthier lives.”

“This is a wonderful building for the university and the state, and the credit for that goes to university leadership, the deans and their staff,” Eli Hoisington, HOK co-CEO and design principal for the firm’s St. Louis studio, said at the event. “This has been one of the most collaborative and engaging processes our team has worked on. Looking at our practice across the country, the scale and breadth of what is happening here is unprecedented.”

Of their firm being selected as general contractor, Turner executive David Opalka said the Health Education Building will be a “world-class project” when it is completed.

“We look forward to helping the University expand its program and achieve their vision to increase the number of students prepared to meet the growing need for healthcare services in the Commonwealth of Kentucky,” Opalka stated on the firm’s website.

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ABILENE, Texas—Since opening in 1968, Abilene Christian University’s Moody Coliseum has been home to various sporting activities for this university located in Central Texas. Moody Coliseum provides the home floor for the school’s Division 1 teams, as well as a venue for graduations, concerts, campus-wide worship services and various other events for the university.

Hoar Construction, in conjunction with sports architect HOK embarked on a $39 million renovation of the 153,000-square-foot venue in order to return the well-known “Moody Magic” to the coliseum, which has diminished after over a half-century of use. The campaign, launched two years ago, called for a “pull planning” construction plan. This allowed for the early design of several components of the projects at the same time that work on the exterior field was also underway.

The phased approach to the work allowed for the saving of time in the overall construction timeline. The work had to be completed on a brisk 12-month schedule, which was not flexible given athletic schedules that were already set several years prior.

In addition to ongoing supply chain issues that have plagued the entire construction industry, the project partners also had to deal with hurricanes, asbestos abatement and floor load limitations. However, through various collaboration efforts, the team was able to still stay on the requisite delivery schedule.

Hoar and its partners were also able to save money in multiple ways on the project. The team shaved more than $400,000 from the budget thanks to working with the steel and engineering teams to develop design documents in real time, which allowed for the procurement and delivery of steel for the coliseum refurbishment faster than otherwise might have been possible.

HOK also envisioned a new facade for the outside of the venue. Their design called for adding two three-story towers, which are home to office space for athletic personnel. The architect also updated the interior by adding larger seats that also provided additional legroom for patrons.

Hoar and the engineering teams were also tasked with overhauling the smoke evacuation system in case of an emergency. This helped save an additional $300,000 on the eventual project budget.

“This project is a true testament to the power of effective pull planning and preconstruction practices in cutting both time and cost for client success,” said Grant Pallan, project executive at Hoar. “We were up against a tight timeline to ensure this renovation was completed by the start of the school year at a standard that students deserved.

“Given the ongoing supply chain issues, this project would not have been completed as smoothly as it was had our teams not utilized pull planning to its full potential.”

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TAMPA, Fla.—Construction and development firm Skanska has announced the completion of the $189 million University of South Florida (USF) Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute. The college is now open at the Water Street mixed-use development in downtown Tampa, which is expected to become one of the most vibrant urban environments in America and the world’s first wellness district.

The 395,000-square-foot, academic building is bringing 1,800 students, faculty and researchers to the heart of downtown Tampa and is set to transform health education by focusing on more hands-on, technology-enabled learning. Standing 13 floors high, the innovative building features a 400-seat auditorium, clinical teaching labs and research laboratories, office space and a wellness center. The school teamed up with Microsoft to create the first-ever Medical School of Innovation, placing USF among the most innovative higher education institutions for integrating technology into medical education.

In December 2014, initial approval was granted to relocate and rebuild the medical college, bringing it within a mile of its primary teaching hospital, Tampa General Hospital. In collaboration with design firm HOK, Skanska began construction work in August 2017 and the project was delivered this January 2020.

Situated within the mixed-use Water Street development, faculty and staff will be able to live, work and study along the downtown Tampa waterfront and provide healthcare services to people in need through USF’s community outreach initiatives.

In Tampa, Skanska has also completed the $122 million renovation and expansion of the Tampa International Airport’s main passenger terminal in 2019 and the $35.6 million renovation and expansion of the Julian B. Lane Riverfront Park in 2018. Nearby in St. Petersburg, Skanska delivered the Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital Research and Education Building in 2018 and is currently reconstructing the St. Petersburg Municipal Pier and Pier Approach.

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The new structure is the largest new building to have been erected in downtown Buffalo in recent decades and was constructed from sustainable materials and methods with the goal of obtaining LEED Gold certification.

Serving as construction manager, The LiRo Group (LiRo) partnered with Gilbane Building Company in the joint venture with architect HOK and general contractor LPCiminelli helping bring it to fruition. SUCF contracted with LiRo-Gilbane following the completion of the schematic design phase prior to its design development. All companies have offices in New York.

“This building fully integrates medical education into Buffalo’s growing academic health center, emphasizing interdisciplinary collaboration and strengthening our relationships with our clinical partners,” said Michael Cain, MD, vice president for health sciences at UB and dean of the Jacobs School, in a statement. “A medical school that is just steps away from UBMD Physicians’ Group at Conventus, John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital, Buffalo General Medical Center, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and all of our other partners will foster synergies that will expand and improve healthcare in Western New York.”

Funded through the NYSUNY 2020 Challenge Grant Program, the $375 million Jacobs School is part of a larger initiative to encourage state economic growth as well as bolster public university and college academic programs. To that end, UB received $35 million in 2011 for the new building, which was administered through the Empire State Development Corporation and SUCF. Throughout, LiRo managed pre-construction and served as project manager for the general construction and the mechanical, electrical and plumbing aspects of the project.

The building’s striking aesthetic is largely the result of its terra cotta tile façade, which underlies its rain-screen system. The tile is a visual echo of the area’s historic buildings and required the use of nearly 27,000 locally made tiles.

Inasmuch as the exteriors are designed to reflect the look of local history, the interiors are a nod to new modalities of learning. The new Jacobs School building is designed to spur interactions among students and the faculty via the use of glass-enclosed and otherwise open spaces. The effort is meant to encourage chance encounters, as conference rooms surround a large central atrium and lounge furniture is arrayed in an open manner that enables group discussions. Many spaces are designed with flexible use-case scenarios in mind, from modular research laboratories that can expand and contract as necessary to desks that readily configure into tables for conferences.

“LiRo is proud to have overseen the construction of this world-class, $375 million hub for life science, technological innovation and learning,” observed Luis M. Tormenta, PE, LiRo’s CEO and vice chairman, in a statement. “We have delivered to the University at Buffalo an ultramodern facility that will serve its students, faculty, researchers and the community for a long time to come.”

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The design of the new facility has been assigned to Perkins+Will, a global firm boasting a staff of 1,500 in 24 locations worldwide, over such notable candidates as HOK and Gow Hastings Architects, according to art industry magazine Blouin ArtInfo. Several interesting ideas are on the proverbial drawing board, including the possible use of timber to create the facility’s main structure. Likewise, the building’s facade, the design of which suggests something that might have leaked from a kaleidoscope, will be comprised of angular photovoltaic panels. Glazed openings will help facilitate the presence of natural light throughout the building and a heat recovery ventilation system will help the project toward its LEED Gold certification goal. This includes the ambition to also be net zero on energy as well as net zero on carbon.

As ReNew Canada, an infrastructure industry publication observed, “The design balances the needs of the school itself, the larger campus and the planet, setting a new standard for sustainability, design excellence, and student experience on Canadian campuses.”

As admirable as its green themes are, the project also endeavors to capture more than natural energy — it wants to capture the hearts of its student body and foment a genuine sense of community. “A primary objective for York University and the Perkins+Will team was the creation of a sense of home and belonging for the School of Continuing Studies,” explained a statement on the firm’s website, which announced the win.

Throughout, the Perkins+Will design is meant to engender a sense of on-campus community. The use of daylight, transparent design motifs and spaces that interconnect between floors are intended to spur student interaction and serve as a place for events that support the development of the school’s culture and community.

“This building is critical to expand the pathways that support international students and new Canadians as well as innovative continuing education to support young professionals in meeting the demands of tomorrow’s workplaces,” said York University Assistant Vice President Tracey Taylor-O’Reilly in a statement.

The School of Continuing Studies was established in 2015 in an effort to combine continuing professional education programs with English language support. Three years later, it is one of the largest schools of its kind in Canada.

“The creation of a new, stand-alone home for our School of Continuing Studies is another important step forward in improving access to post-secondary education at York. This new building will enable us to create even more lifelong learning opportunities, build connections with local and international communities, and help students of all ages and backgrounds to achieve their fullest potential,” said Rhonda Lenton, York University president and vice chancellor, in a statement.

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BALTIMORE — More than four years after breaking ground on a new Health Sciences Facility, The University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) is anticipating a December completion for its new Health Sciences Facility III.

HOK Architects, based out of its Washington, D.C., office, designed the facility in association with Design Collective of Baltimore. The construction manager on the project was the Barton Malow Company headquartered in Southfield, Mich. Jacobs headquartered in Dallas collaborated on laboratory planning and programming. LEED Gold certification is anticipated for the new science facility.

The budget for the 428,970-square-foot building was $305.4 million. Expected to advance UMB’s position as academic research leaders, the facility is aimed to be a critical tool in recruiting and retaining the best faculty, students and staff.

The new facility at the University of Maryland has a 10-story wet lab tower that connects to a five-story dry lab tower through a multistory collaboration space. Nearly 70,000 square feet of open wet labs and support labs will house collaborative research for 92 principal investigators, providing flexible lab design and systems. Perimeter labs are flanked by formal and informal meeting spaces focused on the central multistoried communicating space. The connected five-story dry lab tower supports 18 principal investigators.

A 4.5-foot-thick mat slab creates a “bathtub” effect to protect the shared imaging center’s equipment from possible flooding due to Baltimore’s high water table. The three schools also share a nanomedicine center.

“The Health Sciences Facility III further strengthens our footprint in west Baltimore and, as a result, our economic impact on the city and the state,” said Jay A. Perman, M.D., president at the University of Maryland. “We’re privileged to be able to help revitalize our critically important Baltimore neighborhoods and the state of Maryland as a whole, and at the same time, enable biomedical research and education that has the potential to save lives.”

The new research facility will be the largest state-funded higher-education project to ever be delivered on UMB’s campus, and will enable the School of Medicine to retain its position as one of the leading biomedical research institutions in the world, according to Perman.

In addition, the new facility will house new research programs for the Universities Schools of medicine, dentistry and pharmacy. “Specifically for growth, no existing programs were intended to move,” said Timothy O’Connell, principal in charge and regional leader of science and technology at HOK. “Each dean had their own vision for how the facility should be designed so HOK used an iterative design process with multiple teams to drive decision making.”

Multiple teams helped to successfully schedule the groups to make quick efficient decisions, including the building project team, the faculty scientific advisory committee, the executive committee, and the operations and maintenance committee, according to O’Connell. The planning, programming and concept design was completed in 16 weeks.

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BUFFALO, N.Y. — The new Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences building at the University at Buffalo (UB) was completed in October — four years after the groundbreaking ceremony in October of 2013. The grand opening is scheduled for early December, and students will be using the building the first week of January of 2018. The new facility is targeting for LEED Gold certification.

HOK, based out of New York, was the architect on the project, and LP Ciminelli out of Buffalo served as general contractor. The 628,000-square-foot building had a budget of $375 million. The State University Construction Fund and University at Buffalo was the owner of the project.

The primary reason for moving the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences to downtown from UB’s South Campus was to expand, modernize and improve patient care, recruit new faculty and strengthen Buffalo’s academic health center on the growing Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, according to Michael E. Cain, MD, vice president for health sciences and dean at the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.

“Expansion of medical schools is a national and regional necessity today,” said Cain. “Physician shortages in western New York range from moderate to severe in some specialties — including primary care.”

The new building has made it possible for the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences to increase its class size by 25 percent, from 144 to 180 — in line with recommendations by the Association of American Medical Colleges, according to Cain.

The new medical school building houses modular 21st century, state-of-the-art learning environments that include updated classrooms and laboratories. The design features two L-shaped structures linked by a six-story, light-filled glass atrium — the building’s main interior “avenue,” according to David Schwartz, project manager at HOK.

The new medical school is physically connected to the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus by an enclosed bridge, which will greatly serve the function of the faculty, researchers and students who have clinical responsibilities on the Niagara Campus.

“The design sandwiches the three research floors between the more public parts of the medical education program on the lower floors and the more specialized, pedagogical components, such as the human anatomy suite, on the upper floors,” said Schwartz. “A common atrium and second-floor ‘piano nobile,’ or principal level, fosters collaboration between educators, researchers and the greater Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus community.”

The new facility — which is targeting for LEED Gold certification — features a high-performance terra-cotta rain screen and a glass curtain wall system that brings daylight deep inside the building. The campus-housed station accentuates community connections as well as promotes sustainable transportation options.

In addition, there is a pedestrian passageway with a bike share facility that extends through the building, connecting Main and Washington streets, leading to Allen Street and the eclectic Allentown neighborhood.

Another key design feature of the building is that it was designed without a main dining facility so that area restaurants and stores will have a resulting economic benefit. “We designed the new medical school building with an eye toward contributing to economic development in the neighborhood,” explained Laura Hubbard, UB’s vice president for finance and administration. “We want medical students, faculty and staff to be out in the community, patronizing local businesses.”

The new medical school, populated by physicians and medical students alike, will bring 2,000 more people to downtown Buffalo each day. “HOK’s design for UB’s medical school creates the heart for the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus while integrating and connecting to the surrounding communities,” noted Kenneth Drucker, FAIA, design principal for the project and design director for HOK’s New York office, in a statement.

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BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana State University (LSU) in Baton Rouge recently completed a new student recreation complex (UREC) after five years of work on the project. The new student recreation complex supports LSU’s vision for an expanded on-campus complex that hopes to inspire personal wellness for the student body.

The design team began work on the project in June of 2012 and completed it earlier this year in March. HOK in Kansas City, Mo., and Grace Herbert Architects in Baton Rouge were the architects on the project, with Milton J. Womack Construction in Baton Rouge serving as the general contractor. The budget for the project was $62 million, which included three separate projects: an outdoor recreation field complex, the UREC tennis court and parking addition as well as the main UREC building project — a 257,000-square foot building, which includes an outdoor swimming pool.

The new complex offers 40,430 square feet of cardio and weight room space as well as six group fitness studios. In addition, the new student recreation complex has a 38-foot-high climbing wall and bouldering area, five renovated gymnasium courts, three MAC gyms and a functional training area. There is a lengthy indoor elevated track (one-third of a mile long) that was designed to “wind through the space like an LSU Tiger tail” that also incorporates a sprint incline connecting the track to the functional fitness area.

The new outdoor swimming pool has six fitness lap lanes and an outdoor leisure pool that includes a current pool formed in the shapes of the letter forms of “LSU,” which School Construction News reported on back in August. In addition, the existing indoor 25-meter lap pool was renovated as part of the UREC project. The multi-phased project also included the relocation of outdoor recreation fields for student intramural and club sports to a new off-campus site.

The primary goal of building the new complex included the expansion of facilities to meet the current needs of the student body and “to elevate LSU above its peer institutions in the SEC,” according to Doug Barraza, senior project manager and vice president for HOK’s Sports, Recreation and Entertainment practice. Additionally, the school wished to expand its outdoor fitness space by offering cardio, strength, weights and functional fitness options while also providing a new outdoor pool facility — which was the top priority identified by students in a survey they completed, according to Barraza.

“Overall, we wanted to provide new opportunities to support health and wellness initiatives on campus and to give students additional options that will support healthy lifestyles,” said Barraza. “The new complex was designed to promote ‘healthy buildings for healthy bodies.’ The renovation and expansion will provide much-needed facilities for fitness, leisure, wellness, aquatic and outdoor adventure in a flexible environment on LSU’s campus.”

While the project team did not pursue LEED certification, the complex’s form and layout maximizes daylight, frames outside views and integrates open-air spaces with exercise terraces, outdoor aquatics and interior courtyards, making strong connections between indoor and outdoor spaces. In addition, locally sourced materials, low flow fixtures and ample outdoor space were employed to create a healthy environment for students.

“The design process was influenced heavily by strong student support and input from the programming phase all the way through design,” said Barraza. “The student government, leadership and administration were integral to shaping the building’s final design. Because the priorities of the students were so important, the project is truly representative of the student body.”

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The 536-foot leisure pool is just one of the key highlights of a larger renovation of the University Recreation (UREC) facilities, including the Student Recreation Center that opened in 1992, according to the university website. The $84.75 million renovation project began in 2013 and has been completed in three phases, with a grand-opening celebration scheduled for Sept. 8 to announce the entire project completion. Locally based GraceHebert Architects and Kansas City, Mo.-based 360 Architecture (acquired by HOK in 2015) were tasked with designing the project.

Phase I included an expansion of the current field complex, including moving and replacing four lighted softball fields and four lighted multipurpose fields as well as creating a new Challenge Course across from the Student Recreation Center. Then, Phase II included the addition of nine new tennis courts and an additional 344 parking spaces at the rec center, both of which debuted in fall 2014.

In addition to the lazy river pool, this latest Phase III part of the project includes an update to the indoor swimming pool, a redesign of the rec center’s locker rooms and moving administration offices to the front of the facility to better serve students. A 13,000-square-foot expansion of the cardio and weight space to 40,431 square feet also enhances the space for students as well as the addition of an indoor jogging trail, turfed CrossFit training slope, 35-foot climbing wall, three more multipurpose courts and a Fitness Assessment Center.

In March, UREC reactivated its main entrance, which attracted a massive amount of students to come explore the facilities. Laurie Braden, executive director of UREC, reported an 89 percent increase in student use in the month of March. A majority of those students were individuals who had never used the facilities in the past.

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Cost estimating can make or break a project — and ensures that no surprises will arise come bid day. Continuing to cost estimate throughout the construction process can further guarantee that projects stay on budget and that facility owners are given timely information about system life cycles.

School Construction News recently spoke with Paul Whitson, AIA, LEED GA, senior vice president and regional health care leader in HOK’s St. Louis office, to gain some insight on cost-estimating during the design and construction of major projects.

Q: How often do you use cost estimating while designing a project?

Whitson: Almost always. It’s essential in understanding how many square feet are needed for a project and how much it will cost. On a project for the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs, we are using it in the early programming stages for the school’s Sports Medicine and Performance Center. We have teamed with a construction manager who will use cost estimating to accurately identify constructability issues and deliver the best outcomes for the school.

Q: How does the cost estimating process differ between specific project phases?

Whitson: Ideally, it should reduce costs from concept to the construction document phase. At the concept phase, more allowances are made in estimating for the unknown. But as project planning advances, refinements can be made as site issues and layout become better known. There are generally two big changes in project phases: when you move from unit-costing to systems-costing and when unforeseen contingency costs become clearer. In each case, as the unknown aspects peel away, the costs should go down. Essentially, the more that is known, the better for accurate cost estimating.

Q: How can cost estimating help facilities save money and stay within budget?

Whitson: [Cost estimating] can help in two ways. First, it is a great benefit in setting benchmarks to make the best use of capital on the project and keep it within budget. But it also provides valuable information for that next project, where it can be used to predict future costs for similar projects or an added phase. We use technology like Revit and BIM to model systems early in the project. The model gives team members a better understanding of how all facets of the project fit together and overcomes conflicts to avoid having to make costly changes later on in the project.

Q: How can cost estimating help in the maintenance/operations of the building once a construction project is completed?

Whitson: That’s part of the system costs, and in general proceeds with the understanding of the first cost versus the operating costs over the life of the project. There may be cheaper HVAC systems, but their cost must be viewed over the long term. A more expensive system can provide greater value in efficiency and energy conservation over the life of the system.

Stay tuned for the Architect Roundtable in the March/April issue of School Construction News for more insight on cost estimating.

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