The University of Iowa will request approval from the state Board of Regents to move ahead with plans for seven capital improvement projects involving university buildings across campus.

In its request to the regents, the UI wants to split into three parts, reflecting the different steps each project is at currently. In the first part, it requests approval to proceed with planning for the College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science Research buildings.

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College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science Research Construction

For this project, the UI plans to build new medical innovation and biosciences laboratories on floors three, four, and five of the pharmaceutical science research building and floor six of the pharmacy building.

In the request, the UI states $12 million to $13 million of the project budget will come from the State of Iowa Economic Recovery Funds and Treasurer’s Temporary Investment Income. The UI had previously been awarded an $8.2 million grant for bioscience research and economic development, which would be used to renovate the College of Pharmacy building.

For this project, the UI is also asking the regents to waive the Design Professional Selection Process to contract OPN Architects and IMEG Corporation.

Also included in this part of the request is planning for the building out of level seven in Stead Family Children’s Hospital, with the goal to expand the neonatal intensive care unit and also extend the bridge connecting the hospital to the John Pappajohn Pavilion.

This project would cost roughly $40 million to $49 million, which would be funded by University Hospitals Building Usage Funds. Just as with the other request, the UI is also asking the regents to waive the Design Professional Selection Process, this time to hire the architects SLAM.

New parking ramp near Kinnick Stadium, updates to medical buildings

The next part of the proposal is the approval of “schematic design, project description, and budget” of three projects. The first project involves building a new, five-level parking ramp on the west side of campus, placed north of Kinnick Stadium.

The ramp is part of the 10-year master plan for the UI Hospitals and Clinics, with a goal to reduce the strain of parking in the area. Included in the project plans is a new skywalk from the ramp which would be connected to the existing skywalk at the hospital.

The budgeted cost for the project is $75 million, with the funding coming from the parking system revenue bond proceeds.

Project four is to renovate the Medical Laboratories Building for pediatric research, budgeted for $7.8 million which would be funded by the treasurer’s temporary investment income. In its request, the UI wrote that the renovations would “accommodate both present and future research needs,” including new faculty offices and laboratory support rooms.

For project five, the UI is requesting approval to build a two-story addition to the south side of the emergency department and renovate the north side of the same building. It would cost $37 million, and funding would come from the University Hospitals Building Usage Funds.

Under this project, the renovations will create new rooms, including nursing stations, waiting rooms, pediatric patient rooms, among others. The request cites an increase in demand and crowding as causing delays in patient treatment, something the proposal would likely address.

Additionally, there is a project included in the request centered around the renovation of 12 stairwells in different buildings of the UIHC campus. According to the request, the project will renovate the floors, guardrails, signage, among others, in Boyd Tower, General Hospital, Roy Carver Pavilion, and John Colloton Pavilion.

The project is budgeted to cost $2.27 million, funded by University Hospitals Building Usage Funds.

UI to request renovations to Van Allen Hall

The UI’s final requests are seeking approval for “project description and budget.” The first of these projects is the 7th-floor renovation of Van Allen Hall, specifically the western portion of the floor for the Department of Physics and Astronomy.

Expected to cost $7.5 million, the UI aims to have the project funded by the Building Renewal Funds. According to the request, the renovations will involve the addition of fire detection and suppression, new walls and floors, as well as providing humidity controls and temperature control.

The renovation of Van Allen comes after the UI announced plans to replace the stairs of the building in March to make them more ADA accessible.

All of the requests will go before the regents at its meeting next week on April 19.