Renovation of U. Medical Science Building in Newark estimated to cost $600 million

Last week, Rutgers released the initial plans for the renovation of the Medical Science Building on Rutgers—Newark's campus, according to a press release.

The renderings created by architects and engineers, shared publicly last week, would cost an estimated $600 million.

Brian Strom, chancellor of Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, said a newly renovated building would attract more faculty and increase research grants for the University.

"We are committed to this record investment in Newark because we believe it will create massive returns, not only for Rutgers but also for the city of Newark and the state of New Jersey," he said. 

The existing building is 650,000 square feet, 47 years old and received infrastructure repairs starting last year to maintain itself, according to the release.

Now that the renderings have been created and these repairs are underway, the University plans to accept bids for the overhaul of the building.

The building is critical to the New Jersey Medical School (NJMS) campus and, therefore, its renovation must be conducted in phases as the building needs to remain functional during the eventual overhaul.

Robert Johnson, dean of NJMS, also discussed the expansion and improvements taking place in Newark in the release.

"We have been expanding and improving our operations in Newark for many years," he said. "But a complete renovation of our largest building will take that work to the next level and pay major dividends to the people of both Newark and New Jersey for decades to come."