A $130 million research facility is being built at University of Utah's Salt Lake City campus. The James L. Sorenson Molecular Biotechnology Building—a USTAR Innovation Center—is being designed by the Atlanta office of Lord Aeck & Sargent, in association with Salt-Lake City-based Architectural Nexus. USTAR projects receive state funding as part of an initiative to promote world-class research and technology innovation. The research facility is the first building planned for the university's new 11-acre quad that connects the main campus with the science campus. Tasked with creating a facility that stands out on the campus, the architects designed a 200,000-sf, five-story building clad in sandstone, which takes its cue from the area's Native American architecture. The designers are targeting LEED Gold for the project, which should be completed in 2011.
Architects