New Medical Student Housing Part of $62 Million Construction and Renovation Package Approved by the University of Pittsburgh Property and Facilities Committee

PITTSBURGH-The Property and Facilities Committee of the University of Pittsburgh Board of Trustees today approved construction of new housing on Darragh Street for medical students as part of a package of construction and renovation projects totaling more than $62 million.

These projects are expected to create 140 on-site construction jobs, as well as 137 off-site support jobs, adding more than $100,000 in Pittsburgh business privilege taxes to the City of Pittsburgh. In addition, leases approved by the committee today will contribute $310,000 in local real estate taxes this year.

The $18.2 million Darragh Street project, which will be located across from Salk Hall and the Fitzgerald Field House, will accommodate 184 students in four buildings upon its completion in the summer of 2007; it will include parking for 52 cars. The four-story buildings will consist of one- and two-bedroom apartments and be similar in nature to the Bouquet Gardens residence halls.

The committee also approved $22.2 million for upgrades and maintenance, and in the creation of a 27,000-square-foot mezzanine section for Benedum Hall, which houses the University's School of Engineering. This project will allow for the reorganization of engineering programs and the creation of new, state-of-the-art classroom and laboratory facilities.

Among other renovation and upgrading projects approved at the meeting were:

$4.1 million to renovate the Litchfield Towers Plaza. Renovations include the installation of two skylights in the plaza near Tower C, waterproofing, new drainage systems, new handrails, and additional seating and planting areas;

$8,385,860 construction of an 8,000 square-foot-addition and renovations to the Plum Borough Research Center. The renovations include improvements to the mechanical, telecommunications, and security systems, as well as a building automation system with an uninterrupted power supply;

Replacement of 10 existing escalators in Scaife Hall from floors two through six, including the mezzanine, at a cost of $2,500,000. The escalators now in use are original to the building, which was constructed in 1954, and have far exceeded their expected service lives;

New steam and condensate lines connecting the west end of the University campus with the west end of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Hospitals, at a cost of $5,500,000; and

A new emergency generator installation for the Schenley Quadrangle buildings at a cost of $1,347,620.

Other projects approved at today's meeting include:

A sublease of 9,670 square feet on the Fifth Floor of the Cellomics Building in the Pittsburgh Technology Center for the Center for Craniofacial and Dental Genetics in the School of Dental Medicine. The center has occupied that space for the past three years. The lease is for the period of May 1, 2006, through June 2011 at an average rental cost of $269,116.

A sublease of 5,064 square feet on the Fifth Floor of the Cellomics Building in the Pittsburgh Technology Center for laboratory and office space for the Molecular Medical Institute. The sublease is for the period of May 1, 2006, through June 15, 2011, at an average rental cost of $140,931.12, and contains an option to continue occupancy through July 31, 2016.

A five-year lease for 45,848 square feet of space in RIDC Park Research Center for neurophysics and vaccine researchers in the School of Medicine. The lease expires on Dec. 31, 2010, but includes a five-year option.

A lease renewal for the Hillman Cancer Center with UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside at 5230 Centre Ave. for five years at an annual rental of $8,466,396. The lease expires on June 30, 2010, but includes a five-year option.

The University of Pittsburgh's Oakland campus facilities comprise 10.1 million square feet of space, which accommodates classroom, research, administrative, and support space for its 26,000 graduate and undergraduate students, as well student housing for more than 6,300 on-campus resident students. Since 1995, the University has undertaken in excess of $1 billion in new construction and renovation projects. The Oakland campus of the University employs more than 11,000 local residents, including more than 4,700 faculty and research staff. In fiscal year 2005, those researchers brought more than $600 million in sponsored research funding to the University and to the Pittsburgh region.

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