A proposal to build a $32 million math and science building at Nazareth College has met no vocal opposition from Pittsford residents and is on track for approval, town planners say.
Nazareth is looking to build a 74,000-square-foot, four-story brick building with 16 labs and seven integrated research areas, said Margaret Ferber, vice president for finance and treasurer for Nazareth.
The move, according to Ferber, would allow for better teaching and learning at the college, which is working to transform itself from a liberal arts-based institution to a well-rounded program with competitive math and science concentrations.
“Many of our students come out of high school having experienced more modern and flexible facilities than what we currently have,” Ferber said of Smyth Hall, which currently houses the math and science courses.
Nazareth has an enrollment of about 3,200 undergraduate and graduate students.
The town Planning Board opened a public hearing on the project on Monday, though it drew no audience comments. Before that meeting, about 10 residents from nearby neighborhoods on French Road, East Avenue and Winding Road got together with college officials on June 17 to discuss the project, including the potential traffic impact from the proposal, according to French Road resident Paul Knipper.
He said the neighborhood has an agreement with the college to hold meetings before projects go to the Town Board, and that the neighbors he’s spoken with have all been in favor of the new building.
“It really looks like a well-designed, well thought-out project,” Knipper said. “The college is doing great things to advance its mission to nurture the academic development of its students in this field.”
Since the campus is in a residentially zoned area of Pittsford, this new project, like all the other major proposals on Nazareth’s 150-acre campus, requires a special variance from the town.
Buildings in the residential area are normally capped at 30 feet, but Jeff House, chairperson of the town’s Planning Board, said this project shouldn’t have any problems receiving the variance, since it is similar in size to most other buildings on campus.
The college hopes to begin construction on the new building, which will be located near the Golisano Academic Center, in April of 2011, with an anticipated opening in the fall of 2012.
