WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The Purdue Research Foundation (PRF) in West Lafayette has one mission — to serve Purdue University. Starting in January, PRF’s efforts to serve the university became visible for all to see when construction began on a new private apartment complex for the campus.

PRF made its announcement about construction beginning on Jan. 9 with newly formed joint venture Balfour Beatty Campus solutions and Walsh Investors. Hanbury based out of Norfolk, Va., is the architect on the project, and construction is a joint venture between Chicago-based Walsh Construction and Smoot Construction, based out of Indianapolis. The complex is projected for completion by August 2019.

“The Walsh Construction and Smoot Construction Joint Venture is excited to be part of this innovative project, and Walsh is extremely pleased to continue to expand our growing relationship with Purdue University,” said Sean Walsh, president of Walsh Construction, in a recent statement.

The 835-bed apartment complex will be the first facility in a $1 billion development called Discovery Park District, located on the west side of the Purdue University campus, and will be called Aspire at Discovery Park. The apartment complex will be located on five-acres on the south side of State Street. While the apartment complex is private, the cost to rent will be comparable to a residence hall, and the residents of this facility will be 90 to 100 percent student-occupied.

The four-story, three-building, 387,000-square-foot complex will include studio, two-bedroom and four-bedroom apartment styles. In addition to the apartments, the complex will have 18,000 square feet reserved for community and retail space in the building.

“It is certainly a milestone to break ground on the first of many developments in the Discovery Park District,” said Jeff Kanable, director of the Discovery Park District (formerly called the Purdue Innovation District), in a recent statement. “In just a few years, this area will feature modern living, learning, shopping and dining for Purdue students and the surrounding community.”

The Discovery Park District is a partnership development between the Purdue Research Foundation and Browning Investments and is designed to “provide a pre-eminent environment for educational, economic, cultural, community and real estate development,” according to Kanable.

The 450-acre district will eventually feature 7 million square feet of interior building space, including a hotel with conference center, restaurants, retail and office and business spaces. In addition, the district will include parks, research facilities and industrial space. The entirety of the project is planned to take place over a 15- to 20-year period, with the Purdue Apartments being the first step in this long-term goal.

In addition to serving the Purdue students, all of the developments in and around Purdue University and West Lafayette are carefully planned to support and complement each other and “advance Tippecanoe County as a destination to live in and visit,” according to John Dennis, mayor of West Lafayette.

“The Balfour Beatty team is excited to be the first major construction in the transformation of the west side of the Purdue University campus,” said Bob Shepko, president of Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions, in a statement. “Aspire at Discovery Park will be situated in an ideal location for residents to take advantage of all that this new development will offer.”

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Constructed by Moss & Associates, headquartered in For Lauderdale, Fla., and designed by Miami-headquartered Arquitectonica, the $45.5 million Student Activities Center includes a new two-story Rathskeller restaurant, which is a marker of tradition on the University of Miami campus; three retail food shops; an indoor/outdoor dining area; lounge; galleries; individual and group study spaces; and a large 1, 065-seat multipurpose room to be used for events from banquets to lectures.

“We wanted to give our students an activities center that’s second to none,” said Donna Shalala, president of the university, in a statement.

The four-story building will also include a 10,000-square-foot student organization suite, conference rooms, workspace and a media center fully equipped with computer rooms, production facilities, tiered meeting room and outdoor lakeside amphitheater.

Built to meet LEED Silver standards, the Student Activities Center was constructed in an L-shape along Lake Osceola. The center was partially funded by $20 million donation from the Fairholme Foundation and a 2006 school referendum, which levied a student fee for the construction and maintenance of the new building. Construction on the activities center began in 2011.

The $14.7 million Schwartz Center for Athletic Excellence will hone in university pride to accommodate and support the student athletes of the University of Miami. The 34,000-sqaure-foot facility was built on the north side of the Isador Hecht Athletic Center and features new football locker rooms, a lounge for university football players, the Student-Athlete Academic Center, which includes a 120-seat auditorium, and mew sports medicine and hydrotherapy training areas. A Gallery of Champions will also be located within the building to pay homage to the tradition and successes of Hurricane Athletics.

Designed by AECOM, with offices in Coral Gables, Fla., the Schwartz Center for Athletic Excellence broke ground in March 2012. The building is expected to achieve LEED Gold certification.

“These projects should give UM students and student athletes a big boost to their Hurricane experience,” said Stephen Chang of Moss & Associates, project manager for both projects, in a statement.
 

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