Sundt’s first project at Sacramento State University is going to be unlike anything on campus.
The university’s Science II Building will be a modern five-story laboratory facility that will centralize the College of Natural Science’s Biology and Chemistry departments. In addition to providing state-of-the-art teaching and research labs, the 94,000-square-foot building will include an observatory and planetarium.
“These features will support a physics and astronomy curriculum, but also be open to the community for events,” said Project Director Tim Blood. “It’s a great way to involve the community in the science and research taking place at Sac State. I can’t wait to take my kids to a building our company built to learn more about the beauty and complexity of our universe.”
The total project cost is expected to be around $91 million. Construction is scheduled to start next summer and be complete by spring 2019.
“Sacramento State has historically used the design-bid-build delivery method for major projects on their campus,” Tim said. “The fact that they’ve trusted Sundt as a design-builder to deliver their most important project in decades speaks volumes to our company’s history, our relationship with CO Architects, our chosen architectural partner, and our local team.”
It’s our first work at Sacramento State and fifth collaborative design-build project for the California State University System.
“We’ve had a lot of success with CSU, and that speaks to us doing many things well,” Tim said. “First, we have a culture of integrity. No project is perfect, but we consistently work collaboratively, do the right thing, and focus on solutions not problems. We also know the CSU processes and procedures well, which enables us to help them navigate those waters predictably. Finally, I’ve heard variations of this statement a lot lately: ‘It appears that you actually care about the client and their project,’ which surprises me. Doesn’t everyone? But we do, and it’s nice that our clients recognize that fact.”
Sacramento State’s campus master plan for the next 20 years includes a new events center, renovating its existing Science Building, classroom buildings and Grand Central Quad, a centralized gathering place for students.
“I hope this will be the first of many projects to come at Sac State,” Tim said.