The Indiana University Trustees have approved design plans for a new Cyber Infrastructure Facility on the Bloomington campus that will include a new building to house information technology staff and a separate, disaster-tolerant data center.

Approval by the Trustees of the facility puts construction on the fast track to be completed within the next two years. The new buildings will be located at the old University School site, east of the main campus.

IU intends to start construction this summer beginning with the data center. The Creative Arts building currently at the site will be torn down to make way for the data center — a one story building built partially underground and bunkered — that will house computers and data storage equipment, including one of the world’s largest university-owned supercomputers, Big Red.

Work on the three-story office building for IT staff will start a year later with the entire project scheduled to be completed in about two years.

At one time, plans were to build a combined building on campus behind the Geology building. By moving the buildings out to the Bypass, where IT staff are currently housed, the project can be completed at less cost and can feature a modern design instead of the traditional limestone collegiate-gothic look used on the Bloomington core campus.

IU is asking the state to provide $30.5 million, with the rest coming from the university and private funds. State budget proposals approved by the House and Senate include funding for the facility.

See the University Architect’s Office web page for more information.