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Facilities

During the year, the University continued efforts to maintain and update the historic campus while implementing the program of major building renovations and new construction developed through its master planning initiatives. The total operating expense for maintenance of the buildings and grounds was $72.4 million, and the University spent over $77.3 million in addition to maintain and upgrade existing buildings and building components, including roofing, façade, electrical, and other major maintenance projects.

During fiscal year 2007, the University also spent $102.3 million on renovation and new construction projects, as a number of key projects identified in the 2004 update of the campus master plan moved from planning to implementation. This plan, facilitated by the Baltimore-based architecture and planning firm Ayers Saint Gross, focused on establishing guidelines for the growth of the south and west sectors of the campus, and identified a series of projects to be completed over the next two decades. Of the projects identified, nearly $1 billion of campus and Medical Center projects have been approved for design and construction. Roughly another $1 billion of projects have been identified and are in the planning stages.

In particular, many of the projects identified for the south campus sector were either under construction or entered their planning phases during the year. These projects included:

61st and Drexel Mixed-Use Building: This 431,340-square-foot joint project of the University of Chicago Medical Center and the University includes a 1,000-car parking garage and a 70,340-square-foot office building. The parking structure will accommodate Medical Center employees, while the office building will house University administrative offices, including the headquarters of the University of Chicago Police Department. The parking structure will be completed in winter 2007, and the office building will be occupied in late spring 2008.

Reva and David Logan Center for Creative and Performing Arts: During the year, an international design competition was held to select an architect for this multidisciplinary facility to house teaching and creative programs as well as public performance and exhibition space in visual arts, theater, music, and cinema and media studies. The firm of Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects was selected. The new building will be located at 60th Street and Ingleside Avenue, adjacent to the historic Midway Studios. Preliminary planning is underway, and the project is scheduled to be completed in 2011.

New Residence Halls and Dining Facility: A new 811-bed dormitory and 539-seat dining facility is under construction on a previously vacant site at the corner of Ellis Avenue and 61st Street, just south of the Burton-Judson Courts residence hall. The new residence hall will provide 650 replacement beds for students currently housed in an off-campus facility—the Shoreland—and additional new beds to accommodate the growth of the College over the past several years. The project is scheduled to be completed in autumn 2009. In conjunction with the construction project, the façade and roof of the 75-year-old Burton-Judson residence hall are being, respectively, repaired and replaced. This work is being phased over four summers to minimize disruption to the students and is scheduled to be completed in summer 2009.

South Campus Chiller Plant and South Campus Utility Corridor: To provide chilled water to new and existing south campus buildings, a new south campus chilled water plant is being constructed adjacent to the University Steam Plant at 61st Street and Dorchester Avenue. The new plant will be completed in summer 2008. To distribute both chilled water and steam for heating to buildings on the south campus, a utility corridor is also under construction. The distribution tunnels and buried piping will extend from the Steam and Chiller Plants west to the New Residence Hall. A second phase of construction is planned to extend the utility corridor to Ingleside Avenue to serve the School of Social Service Administration and the David Logan Arts Center.

Other south campus renovations: Major renovations underway on the south campus include the 113,846-square-foot renovation of the Law School Tower, which will be completed in February 2008, and the renovation of the old Illinois Bell switching station at 6045 South Kenwood Avenue. When completed in autumn 2008, the latter renovation will house the Toyota Technological Institute at Chicago and offices and a server room for Networking Services and Information Technologies (NSIT). Two key exterior projects are also underway. The Law School plaza and fountain have been redesigned to create a zero-depth fountain feature and better accessibility to the Law School complex. In conjunction with the Chicago Park District, a south winter garden is being installed on the Midway Plaisance along 61st Street between Ellis and Woodlawn Avenues. Both of these projects will be completed in early 2008.

Master plan–related projects are underway on other parts of the campus as well:

Knapp Center for Biomedical Discovery: This 330,000-square-foot facility located at Drexel Avenue and Knapp Center for Biomedical Discovery 57th Street will provide state-of-the-art laboratories for cancer, pediatrics, and other medical research. The building will be completed in spring 2009. The Knapp Center will be physically connected to the Donnelley Biological Sciences Learning Center, the Knapp Medical Research Building, and the Gordon Center for Integrative Science.

West Campus Combined Utility Plant: This utility plant is being constructed to provide steam for heating and chilled water to the growing west and central sectors of the campus. The 40,000-square-foot, three-story building will be completed in autumn 2008.

Searle Chemistry Laboratory renovation: The 38-year-old Searle Chemistry Laboratory is being completely gutted and renovated to provide a state-of-the-art wet laboratory for the Department of Chemistry and office space for both Chemistry and the Computation Institute. Searle will be the campus’s first building to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council when renovation is completed early in 2009.

Other projects in planning and design phases include new construction for the Regenstein Library Research Pavilion, a new hospital pavilion, a new building and renovation of the Research Institutes for the Division of the Physical Sciences, a renovation and expansion of spaces for the Irving B. Harris Graduate School of Public Policy Studies, and potential future renovation and expansion of the Laboratory Schools and the School of Social Service Administration.