NIU will pay $6 million for the Monsanto property and equipment on Route 23 and Bethany Road in DeKalb to make room for a new Family Health, Wellness and Literacy Center.

The Board of Trustees voted unanimously to purchase the Monsanto building in a special meeting Wednesday.

The remodeled building will officially open fall of 2006.

“Right now, our present facilities are crowded in the center of campus,” said NIU President John Peters. “This will give NIU a presence in the growing health corridor between DeKalb and Sycamore.”

After the meeting, Peters talked to the media about the significance of having a building important to DeKalb’s history.

“That structure is the legacy of DeKalb,” Peters said. “We are going to make sure their legacy lives on.”

The building, which has been remodeled and expanded since being built in 1954, was owned by DeKalb Genetics Corporation, Peters said.

Genetics, a Monsanto Company subsidiary, markets hybrid corn, sorghum and sunflower seeds and supplies a hybrid swine breeding stock. The company is known for its logo, an ear of corn with wings labeled “DEKALB.”

NIU expects to get the facility’s keys in June, with all offices expected to be moved in by June 2006, Peters said.

NIU secured $8.4 million of federal funding and will pay for the building’s remodeling, office furnishings and health-related equipment.

The university will also pay an additional $6 million for the land, buildings and uncovered equipment costs. The $6 million will come from generated revenues of having the new facility, possible bond revenues and restructuring of existing debt, Peters said.

“The money for this will not come from student fees, it will not cost the students,” Peters said. “The Huskie Bus Line will have a loop that goes out to the building.”

The idea of expanding the bus line has not been presented to the Student Association yet because of confidentiality reasons, but Route 7 will most likely be extended, said Student Trustee Eric Johnson.

A few months ago, the building was appraised at $14 million, but NIU did not have the building appraised, Peters said.

“This is a very unique opportunity which we would be foolhardy to pass up,” said Trustee Myron Siegel. “Everyone at our peer institutions will be drooling two years down the line.”

Three offices are expected to move into the new buildings: NIU Physical Therapy Clinic, NIU Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic and NIU Reading Clinic.

Clinics in the new building are expected to see thousands of patients each year, Peters said.

The BOT also approved a depository account with Compass Bank, located in Austin, Texas.

The account will be used only for payments received from patients being treated at NIU’s Institute for Neutron Therapy at Fermilab in Batavia.

The account service is needed because NIU does not have a medical school or experience with billing for radiation oncology treatments, said Kathy Buettner, executive director of state and federal relations.

The next BOT academic affairs, student affairs and personnel committee meeting is at 9 a.m. March 3 at the Board of Trustees Conference Room, Altgeld Hall, Room 335. The BOT finance, facilities and operations committee meeting follows at 10 a.m.