After over a year of construction, the new Lawrence University building on 315 W. College Ave. held its ribbon-cutting Sept. 5.
The building, called West Campus, is the first major building project Lawrence has had since the Warch Campus Center was built in 2009. It’s a joint project between the college and the Trout Museum of Art, which closed its Houdini Plaza site last May.
“We take seriously the responsibility we have to support and grow with the Fox Cities,” said Lawrence President Laurie Carter in remarks before the ribbon-cutting.
The idea behind the building, Lawrence Vice President Christyn Abaray said in a press conference, is to “bring the community and students to each other,” which dovetails with Lawrence’s philosophy of “experiential” learning.
The building consists of two floors of apartments on the top two floors and Lawrence University facilities on the second floor. The first floor will be occupied by the Trout Museum of Art.
The second-floor offices hold about 30 faculty members alongside laboratories, several classrooms and study spaces. That floor is meant for an “interdisciplinary” approach to academics and will support Lawrence’s computer science, mathematics, humanities and conservatory programs, Lawrence Provost Peter Blitstein said during his remarks.
As for the top two floors, they’re one- and two-bedroom apartments that will be available to Appleton residents in general, not just Lawrence students. The apartments will be managed by NAI Pfefferle.
While the Lawrence portion of the building is now in use, museum patrons will need to wait a little longer to check out the Trout Museum of Art. The museum will host its grand opening at its new location 9 a.m to 5 p.m. Oct. 11.
Rebecca Loroff is an education reporter for the Fox Cities. She welcomes story tips and feedback. Contact her at rloroff@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Lawrence University opens its section of new College Avenue building
Reporting by Rebecca Loroff, Appleton Post-Crescent / Appleton Post-Crescent
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