Durham, NC
Completion: Fall 2006
Size: 71,000 gsf
Cost: $14.7 million

As of 2006 the School of Nursing has a new presence on campus, at the heart of the University's medical complex. Ayers/Saint/Gross completed an expansion study in 2001 and was commissioned to design a facility that accommodates the school's plan to expand the faculty, student enrollment, and curriculum and better serve the medical complex and the field of nursing. The facility is also compatible with the two-acre sloped, wooded site occupied by the previous nursing building.

Construction took place in two phases, with teaching, faculty, and social spaces moving into the new building first. The previous nursing building housed research programs until completion of Phase II after which the original facility was razed.

The project emphasizes sustainable design principles, including compliance with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) requirements. Strategies include maximizing day-lighting in interior spaces and using Green-Roof and Bio-Remediation Area to treat a portion of the runoff on the building's southeastern side as part of the site plan development. This project is working to achieve LEED certification by the U.S. Green Building Council.