Ohio State seeking construction approval for Interdisciplinary Research Facility

The Ohio State University will seek Board of Trustees approval this week for construction, and the remaining balance of design services, for an Interdisciplinary Research Facility to be located in the heart of its new West Campus Innovation District.

“The West Campus Innovation District will foster an environment that attracts both world-class researchers and leading-edge companies to work in close proximity,” said Dr. Morley Stone, senior vice president for research. “This collaboration will allow for a collision of people and ideas and ultimately new areas of research that will drive the innovation landscape for the region for decades to come.”

New renderings provide a sneak-peek at the proposed five-story, approximately 305,000-square-foot laboratory building. The project advances the university’s strategic plan, and Framework 2.0, by serving multiple research disciplines, including biomedical, life sciences, engineering and environmental sciences, among others. In addition, two floors will be dedicated to The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, including its new Pelotonia Institute for Immuno-Oncology.

“The location of the new facility accelerates the translation of cutting-edge research discoveries from the laboratory bench to the patient bedside,” said Dr. Hal Paz, executive vice president and chancellor for Health Affairs at Ohio State and CEO of the Ohio State Wexner Medical Center. “Proximity to patients is key and all of Ohio State’s physicians will immediately incorporate the latest advances in diagnosis and treatment.”

The building will support both wet lab researchers and computational researchers. Each of the five floors of the building will be designed to facilitate collaboration. The project will also include a 29,000-square-foot exterior plaza for event and collaboration space.

“The Interdisciplinary Research Facility and its plaza will truly be the epicenter of the new Innovation District,” said Keith Myers, Ohio State’s vice president of Planning, Architecture and Real Estate. “As one of three major projects currently underway on west campus, the foundation is set for Ohio State to grow the Innovation District and attract and retain top researchers as well as develop potential public-private partnerships that support our overall academic mission.”

The research facility will be co-located with an Energy Advancement and Innovation Center, which promises to be a hub for Ohio State faculty members, students, alumni, ENGIE researchers, local entrepreneurs and industry experts to work together on the next generation of smart energy systems, renewable energy and green mobility solutions. It is a cornerstone of the university’s public-private partnership with Ohio State Energy Partners (OSEP), which has committed $50 million for the project, including $36.7 million in design and construction costs.

A third project, the Wexner Medical Center Outpatient Care West Campus, will be located south of Carmack Road in the Innovation District, and is seeking a portion of construction approval during the February Board of Trustees meetings.

“This is truly an exciting time at Ohio State as we make an unprecedented investment in building the campus of the future and begin to realize our vision for an Innovation District,” said Mark Conselyea, Ohio State’s associate vice president of Facilities Operations and Development.

The $237.5 million Interdisciplinary Research Facility has been under design since April 2018 and will be located west of Kenny Road and south of Lane Avenue. If approved, construction would begin in July 2020. The facility is expected to open by the summer of 2023.

In November 2019, Joe and Linda Chlapaty made a transformational $15 million commitment to Ohio State, with $10 million supporting the Interdisciplinary Research Facility and $5 million dedicated to cardiovascular research.

Visit Ohio State Environments to see how development advances the university’s overall mission and Time and Change: Building the Future for major construction updates that support Framework 2.0.