UNMC received approval from the University of Nebraska Board of Regents Thursday on a program statement and budget to allow for renovation of Bennett Hall.
The renovation of the building was made possible by the signing of LB 605 into law during the 2006 session of the Nebraska Legislature. The bill will allow the university to renovate older buildings in need of repair.
Five UNMC buildings are expected to eventually qualify for funds under the bill. In addition to Bennett Hall, the other buildings would include Poynter Hall, Wittson Hall, the College of Dentistry in Lincoln and the UNMC Eppley Cancer Center.
Bennett Hall is located on the northwest corner of the intersection of 42nd Street and Emile Street. Originally constructed in 1918, the building has seven levels and contains 64,494 gross square feet of space. An addition was made to the building in 1947 with a major renovation in 1962.
The proposed construction for Bennett Hall will renovate about 46,000 square feet of interior space to provide an additional 25,000 net square feet of updated space on levels 2 through 6.
“We will be submitting program statements and budgets for each of the other four buildings at subsequent regents’ meeting,” said Ron Schaefer, director of facilities planning and construction at UNMC. “We started with Bennett Hall, because its structural configuration and proximity to the Sorrell Center for Health Science Education makes it more suitable to be readapted for education and administrative use rather than renovating the existing labs.”
He said a large portion of the College of Medicine educational activity on campus will take place in three buildings — the Sorrell Center, Bennett Hall and Wittson Hall. The buildings are in close proximity, and a skywalk will link the Sorrell Center to the southern end of Level 4 of Wittson Hall, only a few steps from Bennett Hall.
Schaefer said that renovation of the five UNMC buildings will take place over the next four years. After Bennett Hall, the current order of submission for the subsequent program statements and budgets will be — Poynter Hall, Wittson Hall, the College of Dentistry and the UNMC Eppley Cancer Center. It’s likely that some of the renovation projects will overlap, he said.
“Renovation of Bennett Hall will be done in phases,” Schaefer said. “The sequence for moving the current occupants of the building to interim or new locations will be determined in the early phase of the design of the project.” Each of the current occupants of Bennett Hall will be contacted early in the design process to discuss their relocation needs and options, he said.
Schaefer said an architect will be selected in the near future for the Bennett Hall renovation project.
Schaefer said Levels 3 through 6 of Bennett Hall will house the consolidated faculty and administrative functions of the School of Allied Health Professions (SAHP). These programs and faculty are currently scattered across the UNMC campus.
“It’s not easy having staff spread all over campus,” said Mary Haven, associate dean for the SAHP. “Putting the SAHP faculty in a common location will greatly enhance their ability to work collaboratively. The Bennett Hall location is ideal for SAHP, as it will provide convenient access to classrooms (which will be located in the Sorrell Center once it is completed) as well as to class labs in Wittson Hall and clinical teaching areas in the hospital.”
Schaefer said Bennett Hall will continue to house the Department of Anesthesiology administrative and faculty offices on Level 2. In addition, the Counseling and Student Development Center, currently located in the Student Life Center, will be relocated to Level 6 of Bennett Hall.
The renovation will allow UNMC to:
- renew finish materials that have been in the building between 40 and 80 years;
- abate the remaining asbestos in the building;
- renovate antiquated restrooms and make them compliant to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA);
- update common space and corridors;
- comply with building and safety codes;
- replace an undersized and improperly located elevator;
- replace an exterior fire escape with a new enclosed exit stair;
- provide a new roof; and
- update the building’s mechanical, electrical and telecommunications infrastructure.
The program statement calls for construction to begin in February 2007 with completion by April 2008. The project cost is $8.9 million.