The Iowa Board of Regents approved a request from the University of Iowa to make repairs to the IIHR – Hydroscience & Engineering building in Coralville after last month’s tornado damaged the area. Iowa code allows the Board of Regents to “institute emergency procedures” when delay in construction could cause a regent university “serious loss […]
The Iowa Board of Regents approved a request from the University of Iowa to make repairs to the IIHR - Hydroscience & Engineering building in Coralville after last month's tornado damaged the area.
Iowa code allows the Board of Regents to "
institute emergency procedures" when delay in construction could cause a regent university "serious loss or injury," according to agenda documents.
"Our IIHR hydroscience program had lab space and office space located in Coralville, and as you can see from the photographs, it was decimated," said Rod Lehnertz, senior vice president for finance and operations, in a statement to the board. "We worked with Executive Director Braun for emergency actions to begin cleanup, repair where we could, and also relocation."
Per the request, the University of Iowa is able to waive the bidding process and has permission to negotiate a contract with a specific contractor. A large metal building will need to be replaced, including its HVAC, electrical, plumbing and specialized research equipment and complex river modeling systems.
UI startups, like
Laminar Scientific, have worked out of the IIHR - Hydroscience & Engineering building. This is one of the UI's major federal funded research centers.
It's expected repairs that take place will happen into the fall.
