The state has allocated $20.4 million to NIU to begin construction of the new Faraday Hall II addition.

Eddie Williams, vice president for finance and planning said in fiscal year 1987 NIU’s finance and planning office had monies appropriated for the construction. Faraday Hall II will hold chemistry and physics courses.

“We have now received the money to begin building,” Williams said. The money was approved by the legislature on June 30 and Gov. James Thompson signed the legislation in August, he said.

At the October Board of Regents meeting, there will be a presentation of what the building will look like. Faraday II will be added onto Faraday Hall.

Williams said construction will begin in April or May of 1990.

“When the architectual firm (Hallibert and Root) finishes the design they will bid the project out. The Capital Development Board (CDB) will handle all of the logistics,” he said.

When a project is “bid out” contracting firms are invited to submit their best price estimate for completion of the project. The CDB is in charge of overseeing the project. “We (NIU) represent the users,” said Williams.

“After the bids are submitted by the contractors, NIU, CDB and the architectual firm will decide (who is awarded the project) based on bids from the contractors,” Williams said. It takes six to eight weeks for the bid process to be completed.

It will probably take 24 months to complete the building, he said. Even though the building is an addition it will be just as big as the existing Faraday Hall.

Williams said that the $20.4 million they received was just what they asked for. Williams said there is enough money to complete the project. “We’re tied to this budget and we (finance and planning) think the budget will be sufficient,” he said.

“A year from now we will be asking for an equipment allocation of $8 million,” he said.

Williams said with the construction getting started, “this has been a very positive year and the greatest period in the history of this university.”