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Bell Tower Development – Genome Science Building

Overview

The $177 million Construction Manager at Risk project built by Clancy & Theys Construction Company consisted of the new Genomic Science Building, new central park, related site utilities work, surface parking, a new cast-in-place parking deck, and modifications/additions to the existing chiller plant on a tight 20-acre site at UNC-CH.

The Genome Sciences Building (GSB) is a cast-in-place architectural concrete building with multiple glass systems, two levels below grade, five levels above grade, and a greenhouse on the roof. The GSB features research laboratories, research support space, an 80-seat classroom, four 30-seat seminar rooms, a 250-seat lecture hall, a 450-seat lecture hall, 54 offices, and three conference rooms. GSB incorporates three distinct laboratory types: wet and dry labs and rooftop greenhouses. By the numbers: nine wet laboratories, four bioinformatics laboratories, and a ten-compartment greenhouse. Support rooms include cold rooms, dark rooms, tissue culture facilities, growth chambers, freezer farms, crystallography labs, low-ozone rooms, x-ray facilities, robotics labs, isotope labs, warm rooms, and plant growth facilities. Level five is the roof level, which features a greenhouse space and an extensive green roof system. This system utilizes a low-profile perimeter air diffuser cabinet along the greenhouse’s exterior wall, along with clear acrylic ductwork, to maximize natural light exposure. With a fully functioning headhouse and lobby entrance gallery, the rooftop greenhouse of the GSB is a unique design feature of the building—one with a minimal presence—stylized and in line with the façade of the building enclosure.

The new central park includes a bowl-shaped lawn with granite retaining walls at seat height. This area slopes down from the eastern entrance of the Genomic Science Building to Kenan Stadium. It features a narrow granite wall water feature, perfect for ample gatherings and seating during outdoor events. The cast-in-place concrete parking deck is an eight-level parking deck accommodating 700+ cars and is located between the chiller plant and the central park. The chiller plant was upgraded, and new cooling towers were replaced.

The project earned LEED Gold.

Project Details
Location: Chapel Hill, NC
Size: 291,374 SF
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