University of Maryland Baltimore

The University of Maryland Baltimore is the state's public health sciences and law campus and a significant presence downtown. The schools of medicine, pharmacy, nursing, and dentistry required a unifying building for collaborative research and teaching on a site that was extraordinarily complex. It required:

• Demolition of existing structures
• Bridging of streets
• Multi-floor connections to multiple buildings
• Height and airflow restrictions because of the helicopter path around the medical center

Ayers/Saint/Gross was the lead design firm in consolidating the research space on campus and creating interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary biomedical laboratories. Also, connections to surrounding buildings created "superfloors." The Phase I program included 76 labs; 64 lab support rooms; animal quarters, including a primate suite; 82 faculty offices; and numerous seminar rooms and graduate offices. The building also creates a new formal entrance to the School of Medicine and integrates connections to adjacent teaching, research, and clinical space.

Ayers/Saint/Gross was responsible for master planning, architectural massing and design, state and local review and approvals, and construction administration in joint venture with CUH2A.

Completion: 1995
Size: 200,310 gsf (Phase I)
Cost: $44,850 million