Summer 2025 construction update
September 19, 2025
Summer vacation? Not for campus crews. While many Spartans were away soaking up the sun, Infrastructure Planning and Facilities teams (along with our partners) were busy tackling various projects to keep things running smoothly. As you head into the new semester, here’s a quick look at just a few of the changes and upgrades you might have missed.
Bigger Projects
Student Recreation and Wellness Center
Construction on the Student Rec and Wellness Center has progressed over the summer with exterior facade work, electrical and mechanical systems installation, and significant structural advancements including natatorium trusses, roof steel, and interior finishes such as tile, gypsum, and soffit framing.
Campbell Hall Renovation
The $37.1 million renovation of Campbell Hall has modernized the historic 1939 building with essential safety, accessibility and efficiency upgrades, including a new elevator, entrance ramp, energy-efficient windows, a fire suppression system and an updated security access system. These improvements support a dynamic residential experience for Honors College students, with versatile spaces designed for wellness, creativity and academic engagement.
Spartan Stadium Scoreboards
These freshly replaced video boards at Spartan Stadium, adorned with the Spartan helmet, will make football games even more of a destination this fall.
Plant and Environmental Science Building
This new building’s steel structure shot up to the sky this summer on the corner of Wilson and Farm Lane. The Plant and Environmental Science Building will include wet-bench laboratory research space, support facilities including growth chambers, and collaborative spaces.
Outdoor Tennis Courts (and support building)
Demolition, installation of site utilities, and the construction of new courts has begun on new Outdoor Tennis Courts that will also include a new dedicated building to provide essential amenities like restrooms, locker rooms, and team spaces.
Central Services Demolition
The demolition of the Central Services Building, just east of Spartan Stadium, reduces MSU’s maintenance costs and provides space for new development.
MSU Museum
This project at the MSU Museum upgrades climate control, including a comprehensive replacement of heating ventilation and air conditioning systems and humidity control, along with replacing the building windows. These upgrades were essential for keeping accreditation which helps the Museum secure federal agency grants that support continued collections care and maintenance, and investment in educational programming.
Dairy Facility
MSU’s dairy cattle herd transitioned into the brand-new, $75 million Dairy Cattle Teaching and Research Center over the summer. The new dairy farm replaces the old one, which was built in the 1960s and was so limited in space, cattle and equipment that researchers have put funded research projects on hold, in some cases as long as two years. The new 165,000-square-foot dairy farm allows MSU to modernize and triple the size of the existing dairy farm to house up to 680 cows, up from the existing herd of 260.
Additional Projects
Multicultural Center Landscaping
IPF’s Landscape Services installed more than 2,000 perennials, 235 shrubs, 22 trees and 300 cubic yards of mulch (recycled from removed trees on campus), complete with a bonfire ring and seating at the Multicultural Center.
Red Cedar River revitalization
IPF crews installed a canoe/kayak portage around the weir at the Administration Building, a boat launch at Jension lot to promote river recreation, and successfully had the 70+ year fishing ban lifted on campus waters of the Red Cedar River. MSU also partnered with MI Waterways Stewards to clean up and reclaim the riparian buffer lands from Brody complex all the way to US-127 and Clippert St. The next Red Cedar River cleanup event is October 17, and volunteers are welcome!
1-to-1 Tree Replacement
Since January 1, IPF’s Landscape Services has already planted more than 300 trees on campus, not including the fall planting schedule. This means MSU will surpass our annual goal of having “no net loss” of trees on campus this year!
Mowing Reduction
Turf acreage along the Red Cedar River corridor is being mowed less, and some spaces are being returned to natural areas for wildlife and pollinators to thrive. IPF has effectively reduced mowing efforts by 22 acres this season, helping to minimize our carbon emissions footprint, as well as promoting native plant material to help with riverbank stabilization.
Chiller Replacements
New chillers , the cooling backbone of MSU’s large buildings, were installed at Conrad Hall, Psychology, and Farrall Hall. Replacing aging infrastructure improves system efficiencies and supports long-term maintenance and operational stability for MSU’s HVAC systems.
Underground Infrastructure
On Trowbridge Road, between Farm Lane and Red Cedar Road, large trenches were dug to install and connect new drinking water, chilled water, electrical and network lines through campus. You may notice temporary rye grass sprouting there, an initial step before the area is planted with a native seed mix and a variety of trees in the coming spring, in collaboration with the MSU Fisheries and Wildlife Club.
From the big upgrades to the small fixes, these projects help keep campus safe, functional, and ready for all the ways Spartans learn, work, and connect. The summer may be over, but the work continues year-round—so don’t be surprised if you spot crews still making improvements as the semester rolls on. After all, keeping MSU at its best is a project that never takes a break.
Want to know a bit more about this summer on campus? Check out other happenings at MSU this summer.