Here's upcoming campus renovations slated for Indiana University Bloomington

At the recent Indiana University Board of Trustees meeting, Vice President for Capital Planning and Facilities Thomas Morrison detailed IU's capital plan for the next 10 years. Some of the upcoming construction projects on IU Bloomington's campus are slated to begin as early as 2024. Since being approved unanimously by the board of trustees, the plan now goes to Indiana officials for potential further recommendations and funding consideration.

A main priority for IU is investing in its current infrastructure, with renovations planned across several campuses.

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"We build buildings on campuses, like we have here, to last forever," Morrison said.

The Bloomington campus has 163 buildings with academic space. According to Morrison, a building's average lifecycle before major renovations are needed is 40 years. In Bloomington, the average adjusted age of buildings is 39.4 years.

By investing in renovation and repair, IU can reset a building's age, which "allows our buildings to have many lives as opposed to one," Morrison noted.

Morrison said IU's long-term capital priorities for the next 10 years include continued investment in renovations and repairs across all campuses, expansion of teaching and research labs and an investment in health sciences.

IU prioritizes renovations at Wells Quad, Public Health, STEM buildings

As part of IU's 10-year capital plan, major renovations are planned for a few key pieces of the Bloomington campus within the next few years.

Sycamore and Morrison halls, Music Addition and Public Health facilities are scheduled to begin renovations sometime during fiscal year 2024-2025. These repairs, which cover around 574,000 gross square footage, are projected to cost $89.5 million.

As part of the renovations, IU will install new, energy-efficient systems such as heating and cooling, plumbing, electrical, elevators, sprinklers, fire alarms and lighting. In Sycamore Hall, Morrison also pointed to some outdated features, including a fireplace and radiators, that need to be replaced or be fully supplemented by another, updated system. The Garrett Fieldhouse and the Music Addition building will each receive new windows.

Student spaces, such as those used for music practice and rehearsal in Music Addition, will also be updated.

The Public Health building's construction project will be focused on its academic side, renovating the facilities to better reflect a more research-driven mission rather than a simple classroom setting. There will be mechanical updates, such as ensuring the building is fully air-conditioned.

IU Bloomington's research lab infrastructure, particularly the STEM-based buildings, will also have renovations, scheduled for sometime in 2024 or 2025. The Multidisciplinary Engineering and Sciences Hall, Chemistry, Psychology, Biology buildings will have labs refurbished and reconfigured to support new technologies and equipment. According to Morrison, this decision was made following the new needs of student instruction and for research purposes.

IU will also install a combined heat and power system at the central heating plant. The plant is expected to provide full backup electrical power to critical student residences and research facilities if a power blackout occurs. The STEM renovation project is estimated to cost $65 million.

While about two-thirds of IU projects are funded by the university, about 23% is funded by the state of Indiana. Morrison noted there's been a noticeable decline in state funding for IU in the recent past. However, when trustees asked what that indicates for the future, Morrison said state legislators typically invest more in renovation and repair projects rather than new construction, so this might mean IU would receive more state funding this time.

State funding will be requested for both of these renovation projects.

In other projects, renovations for Memorial Stadium are projected to begin sometime in 2024 and continue into 2027. Student housing continues to be an enduring commitment with renovations and replacements projected to start in 2024 or 2025 and continue into 2032.

IU continues to weather high building costs, labor market issues

Morrison also addressed concerns about construction costs, seeming optimistic for the near future while noting previous hurdles.

Within the last year, half of IU's projects were going over estimate in the tough bidding market. This was especially true when there weren't many bids. Morrison said when a project's cost is more than expected, IU might delay that project.

"Within the last few months, the bid climate has been a little bit better," Morrison said.

According to Morrison, costs of materials, particularly lumber and steel, have been decreasing and returning to normal pre-inflation levels, which is a good sign. But the labor market — finding workers to complete the job — has continued to be a massive obstacle, as seen in various industries across the United States.

Renovations of other Bloomington campus structures were briefly listed as priorities for later years, including the Musical Arts Center, Student Recreation Center and another phase of the Old Crescent project.

In the next step of this process, the capital plan will be submitted to the Commission for Higher Education and the State Budget Agency for review and recommendations. Next year, the plan will be reviewed by state legislatures as they craft the biennial budget. Morrison said the administration will know how much appropriation IU has received around the end of April of next year.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Indiana University to renovate Bloomington campus in 10-year plan