Located at the northeast corner of Melrose Avenue and South Grand Avenue, the Health Sciences Academic Building is a major urban project within the university’s campus and part of the university’s 10-year facilities plan. RDG’s design creates space to house academic, administrative, clinical, and research space for three major departments: Communication Sciences and Disorders, Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Sciences, and Health and Human Physiology, and enables the university to enhance the training and education of Iowa’s future health care workforce.
Additionally, the construction of the new building will enable the future construction of a new UI Health Care inpatient bed tower. The project also includes redevelopment of the surrounding site, which will be designed to serve building occupants as well as the greater campus academic and student community.
“Our partnership with the University of Iowa and collective vision for the Health Sciences Academic Building establishes a foundation for academic excellence that will serve both students and future health care patients for years to come," said RDG Architect and Senior Partner, Benjamin Kroll, AIA, LEED AP, NCARB. “The new facility will undoubtedly propel the university's renowned health sciences programs into the future, and in doing so, uplift the entire community."
RDG’s design encompasses six stories and 263,000 square feet of academic space. The $249 million project is being funded by a combination of University Hospitals Building Usage Funds, university investment income, and private donations. RDG is providing architecture, civil engineering, graphic design, landscape architecture, and lighting design services in collaboration with the construction manager Miron Construction Company Inc. The project is estimated to be completed in the summer of 2026.
