UTPB PLANS MAJOR GROUNDBREAKING THURSDAY

UT Permian Basin will break ground at 10 a.m. Thursday, April 17 on the new Science and Technology Complex. The facility will be designed for undergraduate/graduate teaching and research, and campus-wide information systems support.

“I would like to invite the public to attend the ceremony,” President David Watts said. “This is a major construction project, and it will significantly impact the look and feel of the campus.”

Watts said the project is part of a master plan designed to make the campus a full service university. Since the advent of traditional freshman enrollment in 1991, the university’s campus life has been undergoing a transition from the needs of commuting students to the traditional recreational and academic needs of younger students who spend more time on campus.

The facility will include additional classrooms, faculty offices and student study areas. This project includes classroom laboratories, classrooms, research laboratories, and support space for Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Computer Science and Information Resources. Included in the two wings of the 70,000 sq. ft. building are six classrooms, 41 labs, 56 offices and three seminar rooms.

“The Science and Technology Complex will enable the university to consolidate many of its science programs into one building. It will promote synergy between these programs while establishing state-of-the-art teaching and research space,” he added.

The Science and Technology Complex is projected to cost $54 million and will be paid for by Tuition Revenue Bonds and $2 million in Permanent University Funds. It will be located south of the Mesa Building. The building is expected to be complete by summer 2010. FKP Architects, Inc. of Houston is the project architect. FKP’s expertise is in the area of classrooms, colleges and universities, and high tech labs. Johnson Seefeldt Architects of Odessa is the local architecture firm. Cooper Construction of Odessa will build the facility.