The University of Nebraska System Board of Regents approved the demolition of the former home of the Munroe-Meyer Institute, on the UNMC campus near the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center.
John Poulicek, project manager for the demolition, said the scope of the project was to demolish the old Hattie B. Munroe and C.L. Meyer buildings, which made up the MMI complex, as well as the former J.P. Lord School, which was attached to the MMI structure.
In his campus forum on Feb. 11, UNMC Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, MD, said demolition of the distinct but physically attached facilities, which served the clinical, occupational and research needs for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, may provide space, in part, for the future home of Project NExT, a public-private partnership that creates a federal, all-hazard health security disease response space.
UNMC plans to repurpose the playground equipment at the vacant MMI building and is working with a campground in North Omaha.
In 2021, MMI moved operations into its new home at 6902 Pine St., near the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s Scott Campus.The approved work will remove both the buildings and the old foundations, finishing with a large grassy hill, with a retention pond at the bottom for stormwater management, Poulicek said.
Poulicek said the resulting ground, encompassing approximately seven acres, will have a nice slope, so as to use all the soil on the property without hauling any out or in. As the work is underway, a support wall might be built temporarily.
The demolition will complement energy efficiency efforts on campus, Poulicek said.
“We’ve made a huge reduction in campus energy usage by decommissioning inefficient heating and cooling units in these older buildings,” he said. “Getting rid of the buildings completely will allow us to save more, because we are still providing utility services to occupied portions of the complex, and all buildings require some level of maintenance activities regardless of how many people are inside.”
Will any of the landscaping plants be moved to other areas on campus or is there a possibility that it could be offered up for those interested in it? There is also a lovely concrete garden bench
located on the second level just outside the door that could be moved or given away. I hope that it is not just going to be destroyed