The University of Massachusetts Lowell is about to start on a $127 million expansion and modernization of its largest building, the Olney Science Center.
Construction on the Kennedy College of Sciences building on North Campus is scheduled to begin in February with the demolition of the Olney 150 lecture hall.
In its place will rise a three-story wing that includes a dozen new physics, chemistry and weather labs, a 160-seat auditorium, a Starbucks cafe and plenty of common space for students to hang out and study.
The 51,300-square-foot addition is expected to open for the spring 2027 semester.
The project also includes the renovation of 44,600 square feet of classroom, lab and office space on the first and second floors of the existing Olney building. That work is scheduled to be completed in time for the fall 2027 semester.
The Olney addition will feature a dramatic, two-story, cantilevered wing extending over the bus loop and sidewalk below. The exterior of the addition will be patinated brass with a greenish-blue hue.
From the accessible ground-floor entrance, students, faculty and staff will be greeted by an airy, skylighted atrium with a grand staircase to the first and second floors.
The ground floor will include the new auditorium and a 24-seat classroom, as well as new chemical handling facilities and a loading dock for the Environmental Health and Safety Department.
The first floor will feature five teaching labs and a prep lab for the Physics and Applied Physics Department. It will also be home to the Starbucks, which will face a redesigned plaza between Olney and Pinanski halls.
Each floor will have study nooks and seating areas with whiteboards to encourage student collaboration.
Six classrooms will be renovated in the existing Olney building, including three that will become Technology Enhanced Active Learning (TEAL) classrooms. TEAL classrooms are equipped with six-person tables centered around 55-inch touchscreen monitors, making it easier for students to collaborate and participate in group work.
Built in 1974, Olney is the largest building on campus at 232,600 square feet.
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