Campus Planning
Boston University is committed to constant progress and development in all areas, and as the university grows academically and by reputation, our campus is growing and changing along with us. Below you’ll find highlighted some of the more notable campus development projects we have undertaken in recent years, as well as some that we hope to undertake in the months and years to come.
Student Village Phase II
The second phase of the John Hancock Student Village project represents a significant step towards the University’s goal of providing housing for all students who desire to live on campus. The Phase II residence now under construction will feature a 26-story tower, which will offer juniors and seniors apartment-style accommodations, and a 19-story tower for sophomores who will reside in suites with a mix of single and double bedrooms and common living areas. A total of 960 students will live in these towers, joining the 817 residents in the Phase I residence hall in the Student Village. The new residence facility will opening September 2009. For more information, click here.
Commonwealth Avenue Beautification
Working with the City of Boston Department of Public Works and the State Executive Office of Transportation, we are on the threshold of seeing the Commonwealth Avenue improvement project come to fruition. The wider sidewalks, with two rows of trees, new period streetlights, articulated crosswalks, the reduction of three lanes of through traffic to two lanes, and a variety of pedestrian friendly improvements will have an enormous impact on the look and feel of Commonwealth Avenue.
NEIDL
The National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratory (NEIDL), formerly known as the BioSafety Lab, is being developed to provide a state-of-the-art facility so we can bring together an outstanding community of scientists to promote the development of drugs, vaccines and treatments to cure an prevent infectious diseases.
The NEIDL is one of the most important projects BU has taken on in recent years, and one of the most controversial. It is essential that we be as open as possible regarding this project in order to enhance understanding of its mission throughout the community. Click here for a fact sheet on the NEIDL project, or here to visit the NEIDL website. You can download PDF versions of the fact sheet or frequently asked questions.
Life Sciences Building
The new Life Sciences & Engineering Building opened in May 2005. The total cost was $83.0 million. There are 42 research labs in this building. In 1998, with the successful recruitment of Geoff Cooper, chair of the Department of Biology, and Tom Tullius, chair of the Department of Chemistry, the University began an exciting program of expansion in these fields. Biology will occupy 47,000 square feet for cell molecular biology and neurobiology. Chemistry will occupy 28,000 square feet, mostly assigned to organic synthetic chemists and several biochemists. In addition to the administrative space for Bioinformatics, the building will house research facilities for three faculty from the Department of Biomedical Engineering and a computational lab for instruction and research. Hover your mouse over the photo to see the old site — the old Nickelodeon Theater on Cummington Street.
School of Hospitality Administration
928 Commonwealth Avenue — one of three buildings recently acquired — is the new home of the School of Hospitality Administration. This is an exciting renovation that will be completed by next fall, and substantial fundraising commitments have already been achieved.
Warren Towers Dining Hall
The Warren Towers dining hall has similarly undergone renovations in the last few years; starting in 2003, the University underwent a 3-Phase Renovation Project, over 4 years. Hover your mouse over the photo to see what it looked like before renovations, and click here for an image of the Mongolian Grill, one of the highlights of the renovated facility.
153 Bay State Road
Boston University has a commitment to renovate one brownstone a year, to be converted into a student dormitory. These brownstones provide the comforts of home in an elegant, old-fashioned setting. We now have over 1,100 students who live in these buildings. It creates the warmth of a small community within a larger institution. Hover your mouse over the photo to view an image of what this common space used to look like.
Graduate Student Housing
The new Graduate Housing Building at 580 Commonwealth Avenue opened in the Fall of 2004. It has 220 studio and 1-bedroom units and is fully occupied. Hover your mouse over the photo to see an image of the old site.
Track and Tennis Center
The first building of the Track and Tennis Center, at 100 Ashford Street, opened in September 2002. The building is 83,000 square feet and in addition to facilitating first-rate sports activities, it has excellent spectator circulation space, with a seating capacity of 1,500. Hover your mouse over the photo to see the old site, and click here for an image of the interior of the building.
John Hancock Student Village
The John Hancock Student Village has been one of the most important and visible campus developments in recent years. We began construction on the old Commonwealth Armory Site in 1998. The first project completed was a residential building for 817 students; subsequently, the Agganis Arena opened in December and the Fitness and Recreation Building opened in March. Hover your mouse over the photo below for an image of the site pre-renovation, and click here for a series of images detailing the interiors of these great new facilities.
