The University of Iowa requested approval for three capital improvement projects at the Iowa Board of Regents meeting on Wednesday.
Rod Lehnertz, UI senior vice president for finance operations, presented requests on behalf of the university for a $39 million expansion of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, NICU, a $6.6 million renovation of lower-level medical laboratories, and a $37 million modernization of the art building.
Expansions to the NICU, located on the eighth floor of Stead Family Children’s Hospital, would build 28 new patient rooms as well as support spaces, family waiting spaces, and provider work rooms and be funded by University Hospitals Building Usage Funds.
In February, the board approved expansions for the seventh-floor NICU project, which is now under construction.
Lehnertz told the board the project would support growth in maternity services, which the university has an increasing need for.
“We anticipate newborn delivery growth by 34 percent over the next five years and 63 percent over the next 10 years,” he said.
Upon approval, construction will begin in the spring of 2025 and be complete in the fall of 2026.
Regent Nancy Dunkel questioned the price point following the proposal, asking Lehnertz what made the eighth floor such an expensive level.
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The ongoing seventh-floor construction is a $42 million project, Lehnertz said. The costs include phasing, finishes, and utility systems, which are unique to an operational hospital. Differences in equipment and scope are driving the cost differences between the two projects.
The renovations of the lower level of the Medical Laboratories Building, for use by the Department of Radiation Oncology, would provide the ability to perform state-of-the-art research and remain competitive in both retention and recruitment of world-class faculty, staff, and trainees, the proposal says.
The project, funded by University Funds and Carver College of Medicine Gifts and Earnings, would also address roughly $800,000 in existing backlog-deferred maintenance within the building, Lehnertz said.
Construction would take place from winter 2025 to winter 2026.
Renovations to the art building would effectively modernize it, as the original building was constructed in 1936. The building has been unoccupied since 2008 when it was impacted by the floods.
“It’s a great fit at the very center of campus, directly across the bridge from the Iowa Memorial Union,” Lehnertz said. “I think we’ll all be very proud of that project.”
Upon approval, construction for the project will begin in December 2024 and last through July 2026. The project budget would be funded by university funds.