IUP has opened the bidding for the contract on a project that will replace Weyandt, Walsh, and Leonard halls.
The project cost is estimated at $63.32 million. The new 181,944 square foot building would occupy one acre of ground on campus, fronting on the Oak Grove, and it will be designed to include space for an 18,000 square foot addition in the future. Leonard Hall will be demolished before the construction begins, but Weyandt and Walsh will still be used for science curriculum courses while the project goes on. Those two buildings will be demolished after the new building is finished. Nearby Wilson Hall, the third-oldest building on the IUP campus, will remain.
Among the stipulations the bids must meet are fast construction, flexible mechanical systems to accommodate evolving laboratory functions, and large windows. The building will be heated and cooled using IUP’s chiller and steam plants, and will be equipped with several specialized areas, including a vivarium, animal lab, clean room, and chemical storage area. (A vivarium is an area designed to keep animals under semi-natural conditions so they may be studied in an environmentally accurate way.)
Bids are due by April 19th and they will be opened on May 18th.
