The MSU Board of Trustees will vote on several university building renovations Friday, including a $3 million addition to the Cyclotron structure.
If the contract for the renovation is passed, construction for the 13,000 square-foot addition will begin shortly after the board meeting, said University Engineer Bob Nestle. He projects that the add-on will be completed in December.
The new portion will add to the existing fabrication area, where many of the materials used for the Cyclotron are created.
"These are very specialized components, and they build them there," Nestle said. "It's basically just a big shop to form cyclotron components."
The current shop is 6,000 square feet and the entire building is 120,000 square feet, Nestle said.
The employees in the building are limited to creating only a few of the parts they need, and if the trustees pass the proposal, the addition will offer the necessary space.
"They're so crowded in the existing fabrication building and they'd like to work on four or five projects, but they don't have the room," Nestle said. "They were due for significant additions."
Nestle said the construction won't interrupt any of the current work at the Cyclotron.
The Board of Trustees also will have a public discussion at the Friday meeting about additions to the MSU Clinical Center to help develop the center's minor surgery capabilities.
In late January, medical officials announced that the proposed additions would cost about $20 million to add 30,000 square feet to the building.
Officials expect the project to be completed in about three years.
A formal decision concerning the additions has yet to be made, and this is a chance for the trustees to speak with the public about the idea, MSU President M. Peter McPherson said.
"I just expect a good discussion and a possible engagement of somebody to help us develop it further," McPherson said.
The next step in the process is to appoint an architect, but Provost Lou Anna Simon said everyone involved needs to take time to grasp the entire issue.
"In order to go to the next spaces, we need to get a better understanding on how to renovate from someone who understands medical facilities," she said.
The trustees also will vote on renovations to update a classroom in the Engineering building, to replace the roof on IM Sports-Circle and to connect two existing greenhouses on campus.
