Office of Public Relations — Newsroom
News Release
For Immediate Release
Contact: Caitlin Jenney, 303.724.1520, cell 303.328.5720, Caitlin.Jenney@uchsc.edu
University of Colorado Denver Chancellor Joins in Call to Reinstate New Science Building Funding
DENVER (March 24, 2008) - University of Colorado Denver Chancellor M. Roy Wilson, MD, MS, joined leaders of the Auraria Higher Education Center (AHEC) today to denounce the decision by lawmakers to pull $37.5 million in financing allotted for the new Auraria Campus Science Building in downtown Denver.
Estimated at costing $120 million, the Auraria Science Building along Speer Boulevard would be shared by the University of Colorado Denver, Metropolitan State College of Denver and the Community College of Denver. Groundbreaking began in December of 2007 with each institution agreeing to raise nearly $12.5 million for the new five-story, 181,000 square-foot facility. A total of $25 million has been raised by all three institutions thus far. But the state's Joint Budget Committee recently pulled promised financing due to new, lower-budget estimates for Colorado construction projects.
With more than 39,000 students combined, the Auraria Campus suffers from an extreme space shortage--750,000 extra square feet are needed. The campus has seen a 250 percent increase in students versus a 15 percent increase in space in the past three decades. The current Science Building is antiquated and presents space and safety concerns for students, faculty and staff. Labs have been closed because of air quality conditions and pregnant and nursing mothers are advised not to take any classes in the building. Core courses in biology cannot be provided because of the lack of safe laboratory space, making the Auraria Campus the only campus in Colorado not to offer a lab experience in at least one critical biology class.
According to Chancellor Wilson, the Auraria Science Building ranked 18th on a long list of CDC capital construction projects in February of 2008. But in March, the Science Building had an additional 13 projects ahead of it.
The existing Science Building is scheduled to be renovated if the new facility is built, adding new offices, classrooms and teaching and research labs for all three institutions.
AHEC leaders will continue to meet with lawmakers in hopes of resolving the issue.
The University of Colorado Denver is one of three universities in the University of Colorado system. Located in Denver on the Downtown Campus and at Ninth & Colorado Blvd., and on the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, Colo., University of Colorado Denver is Colorado's premier research university offering more than 100 degrees and programs in 13 schools and colleges and serving more than 28,000 students in Metro Denver and online. For more information, visit the website at www.ucdhsc.edu or the UC Denver Newsroom at www.uchsc.edu/news.