Normandale Community College, Science Building Addition and Renovation
Bloomington, MinnesotaNormandale Community College, part of the Minnesota State College and University System recently completed the construction of a 50,000 SF renovation of and 45,000 SF addition to their existing science facility. The planning included new replacement spaces for the departments of Biology, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Physics and Nursing and renovated spaces for classrooms and offices. In addition, a new secondary pedestrian entrance to the building complex was created. The existing building was constructed in the 1960's at a time when many campuses were expanding their science programs due to significant growth in student population and interest in the sciences. The building had been incrementally modified over the years to accommodate changes in the program and inadequacies in the HVAC systems. This project brought the building up to current standards for ventilation, lighting and technology systems. The new laboratory and classroom spaces are designed to accommodate maximum flexibility for an evolving science curriculum. Information and media technology is incorporated into the labs to allow computer use at the bench and lecture in the lab. The chemistry labs feature direct supervised access to chemical storage and preparation rooms for safety and security. Of special note is a unique biology "super laboratory" which uses an open laboratory environment, combined with flexible laboratory section scheduling that incorporates ten different undergraduate biology lab and support spaces into one space.