New $175.4M building could house quantum research

The University of Colorado Boulder will begin constructing a new academic building in October, making the $175.4 million project the first such endeavor since 2018.

The 79,200-square-foot building will create an academic home for the chemistry and applied math departments. It will be located on the main campus off Regent Drive and include lab space, office space, a 200-seat auditorium, space for future quantum research labs and indoor and outdoor student gathering or study spaces.

“It’s a very rare event on main campus, and so for this building to be built to support science education and research is amazing,” said Irene Blair, CU Boulder dean of natural sciences.

The University of Colorado Board of Regents, the elected board that oversees the CU System, approved the project on Thursday. Construction will begin in October with move-in anticipated for December of 2026.

The design and construction of the building has sustainability in mind and will align with the campus climate action plan. It’s on track to achieve LEED Gold certification and aims to achieve LEED Platinum, if possible. LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a certification for sustainable building.

d’andre Willis, CU Boulder’s assistant vice chancellor for planning and design, said the goal is to achieve an energy use intensity of 100 to 105, and the baseline for other buildings around campus is 200.

“It is significantly lower than our baseline and other lab buildings on campus, and we’re really excited about that,” Willis said.

Willis said the building will have an open and welcoming feel with many exposed wood details.

“One of the things I’m very excited about is we’ve been able to