During the Facilities and Auxiliaries Committee meeting, the board discussed a Kelley School of Business career services addition and a Woodlawn Avenue railroad crossing easement.
The board approved the Kelley School of Business career services addition. Thomas Morrison, IU vice president for capital planning and facilities, and Idalene Kesner, dean of the Kelley School of Business, led the discussion on this project.
The 30,000-square-foot addition to the north side of Hodge Hall will allow the business school’s career services to expand, according to the agenda.
“That program now exists already in a space in Kelley that’s cramped and somewhat outdated and needed renovation,” Morrison said.
This project is estimated to cost $14 million and will be funded through a recent gift from Conrad Prebys, president of Progress Construction and Management in San Diego, California, as part of “For All: The Indiana University Bicentennial Campaign,” according to an Oct. 1 press release.
This addition would be the third phase of a larger three-part renovation and expansion of the business school, Morrison said.
“This has long been a need at the Kelley school,” Morrison said. “As we’ve been going through programming and planning and the expansion of the Kelley school and renovation, it’s always been considered that we needed to address the career services function.”
This now gives Morrison and his team the opportunity to work on the design of the project, which they will present for approval at a future trustees meeting.
Although the project must still be approved by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education and the State budget committee, Morrison said they anticipate the facility will be complete by the end of 2017, with construction starting in about a year.
The Board also approved the Woodlawn Avenue railroad crossing easement.
This easement is part of the project to connect Woodlawn Avenue to the football field.
Approval was requested by the City of Bloomington to allow access to an area between 12th and 13th streets to install and maintain a railroad crossing. The size of the easement will be approximately 0.122 acres, according to the agenda.
During the Finance, Audit and Strategic Planning Committee meeting, John Whelan, associate vice president for human resources, updated the Board on IU employee benefits.
The board approved a resolution regarding benefits for same-sex partners.
This resolution removes the provision passed in September 2001 that gave benefits to same-sex couples.
Because the Supreme Court ruled in July that same-sex couples have the constitutional right to marry, this provision is no longer needed.
