The West Virginia University Board of Governors on Friday authorized the administration to proceed to work with community partners to construct Mountaineer Center, a $25-$30 million health, education and wellness facility at Mylan Park.
The Center, announced in November 2015, would be located on approximately 20 acres and be a community facility as well as home to WVU’s men’s and women’s swim teams and women’s cross country and track teams and the county’s high school track and swim competitions.
“While we have made good progress, we still have some work to do which we hope to finalize in the coming weeks,” said Rob Alsop, vice president for legal, government and entrepreneurial engagement.
The board unanimously voted to authorize the administration, including WVU Athletics, to participate, along with other community partners, on the facility, and report back to the board on progress and any outstanding issues relating to such participation. Board member Taunja Willis Miller abstained.
Also Friday, Provost Joyce McConnell updated the board on a change in the academic calendar for next year, moving the beginning of fall classes a week sooner, to Aug. 16 and December Commencement to Dec. 15.
In other business, the board:
• Approved a $3 million investment in research space at the Health Sciences Center: an inhalation lab to study the effects of toxic substances on lab animals under tightly controlled conditions and the build out of 10,000 square feet of shell space on the ground floor of the Erma Byrd Biomedical Research Facility for research offices and conference space for HSC Research and Graduate Studies Office and the West Virginia Clinical and Translational Science Institute will relocate into this space.
• Approved Board Chairman Thomas V. Flaherty’s committee appointments: Strategic Plans and Initiatives, Flaherty (chair), Gregory Babe, Marty Becker, Willis Miller, James R. (JR) Rogers, Richard Turton and Kim Weaver; Academic Affairs and Accreditation, J. Thomas Jones (chair) Julie Merow, Stanley Hileman, Thomas A. Heywood, Edward L. Robinson, Turton and Weaver; Finance and Facilities and Revitalization: David Alvarez (chair), Becker, Hileman, Willis Miller, Jones, Diane Lewis, Dixie Martinelli and Benjamin M. Statler; Divisional Campus: Edward L. Robinson (chair), Merow, Hileman, Martinelli, Heywood, Babe and Turton: Audit: Wilmoth (chair), Alvarez, Flaherty, Lewis, Martinelli, Rogers and Statler; and the Executive Committee: committee chairs.
The Board will next meet in January at a date to be determined.
-WVU-
jb/12/16/16
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