Carnegie Mellon unveils plans for new science hall in Oakland

Carnegie Mellon University plans to open a new $252 million project in Oakland by 2027 and unveiled design plans for the new academic building on Monday.

The 338,900-square-foot building will host researchers and students from the university’s Mellon College of Science and School of Computer Science, officials said. A seven-story tower will contain labs, offices and other learning and collaborative spaces.

Called the Richard King Mellon Hall of Sciences, it will be located at the corner of South Craig Street and Forbes Avenue at the site of a surface parking lot. The project will include an underground parking garage with 130 spaces.

“The Richard King Mellon Hall of Sciences will bring together some of the best Carnegie Mellon has to offer: the foundational sciences, computer science and the arts,” said Curtis A. Meyer, interim dean of Mellon College of Science. “This building will be the interface where these disciplines and the community can come together to learn and collaborate.”

A small plaza is proposed in front of the structure and its ground floor takes design nods from a thistle — the national flower of Scotland — a nod to the university’s founder Andrew Carnegie and his Scottish heritage.

Unlike most of CMU’s campus, the new science hall will integrate into several Oakland businesses and institutions, said officials. Most of CMU’s campus is self-contained along Forbes Avenue near Morewood Avenue, but the new science hall will be adjacent to a popular business district on South Craig Street and the Carnegie Museums.

The first floor of the hall will house the university’s Institute for Contemporary Art Pittsburgh, a museum exhibiting works of culture, science and technology.

The science hall is one of many recent expansion projects at CMU, and other development that has hit Oakland thanks to growth of the University of Pittsburgh and local hospitals. Oakland has been forecasted to see the most new development in the city going forward, according to local experts.

It is currently tracking for LEED Gold certification, and will include features like a green roof and heat recovery systems, according to a release.

The hall was funded in part by a $75 million grant from Richard King Mellon Foundation. The university said it is currently fundraising for the project, and plans to open in the fall of 2027.