Kresge replacement may be part of LSI By Jeannie Baumann Daily Staff Reporter The Kresge Research Complex may be replaced with a new facility in conjunction with the Life Sciences Institute, pending approval from the University Board of Regents. University Chief Financial Office Robert Kasdin said the costs of tearing down and replacing the Kresge buildings, which are used primarily for biomedical research, have yet to be determined. But the demolition and rebuilding would be part of the $700 million price tag for LSI construction, including subsidiary components and Medical Campus construction. Medical School Dean Allen Lichter said LSI and the new medical research building will improve faculty recruitment. "I believe that the whole new research complex should be looked at in its totality. Brilliant investigators coming into the Life Sciences Institute will attract faculty for the Medical Campus as well as the other way around," he said, adding that all the buildings will be working "synergynistically." Lichter said the current buildings - Kresge Research I, II and III - are not conducive to modern biomedical research. "We have researchers that cannot work in this building," he said. Lichter said the small, individual workspaces of the Kresge facilities catered to the work style of researchers during the 1950s when it was constructed. But laboratories built in recent years have large, open spaces built for modern research. "Modern biomedical research is collaborative," he said. "This building is the antithesis of that." Lichter also said certain biomedical equipment requires more power than the buildings currently allow. He also said modern buildings could reduce problems associated with caring for the animals used in University research. The buildings now house research animals on various levels, Lichter said, the new structures would place animals on lower levels to help reduce leakage problems during cage washing. Vice President for Medical Affairs Gil Omenn led the University Board of Regents on a tour of the facilities to familiarize them with the conditions of the laboratories Thursday. Omenn said the complex needs to be replaced for the University to stay nationally competitive and "make a difference in academic contributions." After the tour, University President Lee Bollinger said he supports the construction proposals. "Never did we have an easier case to make than with the facilities in this building," he said. "We cannot run a major research university with the facilities in this building." Lichter said the new medical research site is planned to be built at the corner of East Huron Street and Zina Pitcher Place. The LSI complex is to be built from Palmer Field on Washtenaw Avenue, with a bridge over East Huron Street connecting the LSI complex and research facilities. The bridge closes the gap between the Medical Campus and Central Campus, Bollinger said Thursday. "It physically bridges two parts of the campus, and it also creates and intellectual bridge between the Medical School and LSA. This is an extremely exciting chance for the University to create great science, great teaching and add to the aesthetic character of the place," he said. Omenn said a formal presentation is scheduled be made to the regents during their February meeting. Originally on page 3A in the 1-24-2000 issue of the Daily.