The University of Connecticut is looking to find a new, larger home for its School of Nursing, which is outgrowing its current location.
The General Assembly recently approved a bond package that includes up to $30 million for UConn to use toward the design and construction of a new facility for its nursing program.
UConn’s Board of Trustees and its financial affairs committee will discuss a new home for the school at its upcoming meeting on June 28.
Stephanie Reitz, a spokeswoman for UConn, said they will initially review a $2 million allocation to start the planning process. At a later time, they will review and discuss additional allocations for the design and construction of the building.
Designs are expected to be finished by June 2024. Following a bidding process, construction is slated to begin in November 2024, with the new building complete in July 2026, Reitz added.
Currently, UConn’s School of Nursing is in Storrs Hall, a historic edifice which was built in 1906. UConn expanded it in 2012 because the school was growing, and after the expansion, it was 51,000 gross square feet, according to the university.
“Due to the continued growth of the school’s program, the existing building can no longer adequately fulfill the school’s requirements in terms of size and spatial configuration,” Reitz said.
The new building will help accommodate increased enrollment in the nursing school. Healthcare providers have reported a shortage in workers, especially nurses, to meet their needs.
Plans are for the new School of Nursing building to be located near the existing Brain Imaging Research Center, which is on Alethia Drive in Storrs, in alignment with the 2015-2035 Campus Master Plan, according to Reitz.
Meanwhile, lawmakers also approved UConn bonding for the acquisition or leasing of property at the XL Center in Hartford. Up to $5 million would be used for planning, design and construction to convert the space into an academic use for UConn’s Hartford campus.
According to Reitz, in the coming months, UConn will be looking at potential uses of space at the XL Center, but the university hasn’t yet determined how that space will be used, or the timing.