$80 Million SLU Medical Research Construction Plan Raises Spirit of Saint Louis

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Researched by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas). The venerable Saint Louis University (SLU) (Saint Louis, Missouri) (Plant 1059592) is embarking on the largest capital construction plan in their 180-year history. Focused on the school's health-science campus, the $80 million program includes both construction of a new flagship laboratory building and renovations of existing research facilities.

Formally announced by SLU in February 2004 and first reported by Industrialinfo.com in May 2003 (PEC 28000987), the current plan includes $66 million for construction of a 10-story 200,000 square foot research building. Designed by Cannon Design (Saint Louis, Missouri) (COMPANY 1069861) the aesthetically pleasing research tower will include a laboratory animal vivarium, six floors of flexible modular laboratories and a Clinical Core lab, with the lab spaces designed to encourage interdisciplinary research activity. Dark rooms, cold-rooms, autoclave/glasswash rooms and tissue culture rooms will be located on each floor and a BSL-3 (Biosafety Level-3) lab suite will be on the eighth floor.

A total of $14 million will be spent on renovations of existing laboratory facilities. (PEC 28001122) Construction is scheduled to begin with the year, with the school seeking a minimum of $22.5 million of the total $80 million cost prior to starting either project. SLU will be using a combination of public and private dollars for funding.

SLU's luck in attracting more research dollars spurred the construction plan. Research funding from the National Institutes of Health to the school increased a reported 120 percent from 1998 to 2002. SLU's research is focused on a variety of disciplines, including infectious diseases/ virology, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, liver disease and the neurosciences.

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