UC San Francisco Moves Ahead with New Research, Academic Building

The University of California Board of Regents recently approved the design and budget for a new research and academic building at UC San Francisco, according to a news release. The $842-million project will move forward into the construction phase.

The University is partnering with HGA, who will serve as the project’s Executive Architect and Architect of Record. HGA will spearhead programming and planning, interior design and project management, and the design of spaces for research labs and technical program spaces. Architecture firm Snøhetta will lead the building’s overall conceptual design and surrounding area, including site improvements and landscaping.

“We have an incredible opportunity to support our research community with a state-of-the-art building designed to advance the way research is done today,” said Catherine Lucey, MD, MACP, UCSF executive vice chancellor and provost. “Parnassus has always had a thriving UCSF research community that has done tremendous, breathtaking work. This new building will create a space that matches the expertise.”

Another university news release reports that the Parnassus Research and Academic Building will cover roughly 300,000 square feet and stand nine stories. The project has a goal of achieving LEED Gold certification and will be all electric to advance the university’s carbon neutrality goals.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Big Horn Academy

    Big Horn Academy

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. Big Horn Academy has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Project of Distinction award in the category of New Construction.

  • Hawaii Elementary School Reopens Following $25M Campus Modernization

    Haʻaheo Elementary School in Hilo, Hawaii, has reopened to students following a three-year, $25-million campus modernization and expansion project that significantly increases the school's instructional space while preserving one of the island's oldest educational institutions, according to local news.

  • Johns Hopkins Starts Construction on New Residence Hall, Dining Facility

    The Homewood Campus of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md., recently began construction on a new residence hall and dining facility, according to university news. The work involves demolishing the existing Alumni Memorial Residence Hall I, which was built in 1923, to make room for the new facility.

  • Opportunity by Design Framework

    Opportunity by Design

    Educational improvement efforts often focus on curriculum, instruction, assessment, professional development, and intervention systems while treating the physical school building as background. But school design is not a passive backdrop to learning — it is a structural lever for equity.