flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Higher education construction costs for 2023

Higher Education

Higher education construction costs for 2023

Fresh data from Gordian breaks down the average cost per square foot for a two-story college classroom building across 10 U.S. cities.


By Gordian  | April 13, 2023
Higher education construction costs for 2023
Photo: Pixabay

Colleges and universities manage more than 6 billion square feet of campus space in 210,000 buildings nationwide, with a replacement value of $2 trillion and a backlog of urgent capital renewal needs exceeding $112 billion.

The state of campus facilities will define the financial future of higher ed institutions more than any other single factor. Data collected from a thorough assessment of campus conditions should be used to prioritize building portfolio needs and establish a strategic framework for linking today’s investment realities with future campus aspirations.

Readying campus facilities for future students can take the form of renovations, updates or wholesale replacement, with the driver of that decision based in the alignment of available resources with institutional programmatic priorities. 

As North America’s leading construction cost database, Gordian’s RSMeans Data has been synonymous with reliability since the 1940s, so you can trust it when budgeting for projects that will transform your campus for students, alumni, professors and staff.

With localized square-foot costs on over 100 building models, Gordian’s RSMeans Data allows architects, engineers and other preconstruction professionals to quickly and accurately create conceptual estimates for future builds. This table shows the most recent costs per square foot for two-story college classrooms in select cities, with sustainable, “green” building considerations. 

Visit rsmeans.com/bdandc for more information about Gordian’s RSMeans Data.

Cost per Square Foot for Two-Story College Classrooms with Green Building Considerations

City

2020

2021

2022

2023

National Average

$220.32

$221.38

$229.47

$243.54

Athens, GA

$178.55

$175.75

$182.06

$188.76

Austin, TX

$176.56

$179.01

$183.94

$196.80

Tuscaloosa, AL

$186.09

$186.01

$194.43

$207.45

Tempe, AR

$188.93

$188.88

$194.50

$207.94

Charlottesville, VA

$185.32

$190.71

$196.39

$201.75

Boulder, CO

$195.82

$193.08

$201.54

$210.98

Bloomington, IN

$199.80

$199.26

$206.05

$216.72

Ann Arbor, MI

$216.59

$219.54

$224.73

$235.17

Madison, WI

$216.75

$224.27

$227.99

$242.15

Berkeley, CA

$280.11

$283.40

$287.92

$303.11

Please note: Square foot models are used for planning and budgeting and are not meant for detailed estimates.

 

Related Stories

University Buildings | Sep 4, 2024

UC San Diego’s new Multidisciplinary Life Sciences Building will support research and teaching in both health and biological sciences

The University of California San Diego has approved plans for a new Multidisciplinary Life Sciences Building, with construction starting this fall. The 200,000-sf, six-level facility will be the first building on the UC San Diego campus to bridge health science research with biological science research and teaching. 

University Buildings | Aug 12, 2024

Planning for growing computer science programs

Driven by emerging AI developments and digital transformation in the business world, university computer science programs are projected to grow by nearly 15% by 2030.

Education Facilities | Aug 4, 2024

A former supersonic wind tunnel becomes a new educational facility for transportation design

The Mullin Transportation Design Center at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, Calif., provides access for full-scale vehicular models, replicating a professional design studio.

University Buildings | Aug 1, 2024

UC Riverside’s student health center provides an environment on par with major medical centers

The University of California, Riverside's new Student Health and Counseling Center (SHCC) provides a holistic approach to wellness for students throughout the UC Riverside campus. Designed by HGA and delivered through a design-build partnership with Turner Construction Company, SHCC provides healthcare offerings in an environment on par with major medical centers.

Student Housing | Jul 31, 2024

The University of Michigan addresses a decades-long student housing shortage with a new housing-dining facility

The University of Michigan has faced a decades-long shortage of on-campus student housing. In a couple of years, the situation should significantly improve with the addition of a new residential community on Central Campus in Ann Arbor, Mich. The University of Michigan has engaged American Campus Communities in a public-private partnership to lead the development of the environmentally sustainable living-learning student community.

Adaptive Reuse | Jul 30, 2024

Empty mall to be converted to UCLA Research Park

UCLA recently acquired a former mall that it will convert into the UCLA Research Park that will house the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy at UCLA and the UCLA Center for Quantum Science and Engineering, as well as programs across other disciplines. The 700,000-sf property, formerly the Westside Pavilion shopping mall, is two miles from the university’s main Westwood campus. Google, which previously leased part of the property, helped enable and support UCLA’s acquisition.

Designers | Jul 29, 2024

Inclusive design for locker rooms: Providing equitable choice and access

SRG designers pose the question: What would it look like if everyone who wanted to use a restroom or locker room could? 

Smart Buildings | Jul 25, 2024

A Swiss startup devises an intelligent photovoltaic façade that tracks and moves with the sun

Zurich Soft Robotics says Solskin can reduce building energy consumption by up to 80% while producing up to 40% more electricity than comparable façade systems.

University Buildings | Jul 17, 2024

University of Louisville Student Success Building will be new heart of engineering program

A new Student Success Building will serve as the heart of the newly designed University of Louisville’s J.B. Speed School of Engineering. The 115,000-sf structure will greatly increase lab space and consolidate student services to one location.

University Buildings | Jul 11, 2024

3 considerations for designing healthy, adaptable student dining

Amanda Vigneau, IIDA, NCDIQ, LEED ID+C, Director, Shepley Bulfinch, shares three ways student dining facilities have evolved to match changes in student life.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category

Libraries

Reasons to reinvent the Midcentury academic library

DLR Group's Interior Design Leader Gretchen Holy, Assoc. IIDA, shares the idea that a designer's responsibility to embrace a library’s history, respect its past, and create an environment that will serve student populations for the next 100 years.




halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021