The Larner College of Medicine biomedical research enterprise received another boost on January 31 when the members of the University of Vermont Board of Trustees voted unanimously to approve construction of the Firestone Medical Research Building.

The new building has been in the planning stages for several years, and members of the Larner community gathered in October 2019 to celebrate Dr. Steve Firestone from the Larner Class of 1969 for his generous lead gift for the building.  Approval from the UVM Board allows the College to move forward to begin the construction of this new facility. Ground is expected to be broken on the project later this spring.

The planned 60,000-square-foot building will be located adjacent to the southern end of the Health Sciences Research Facility, and has been designed to accommodate over 200 faculty, post-doctoral fellows, staff, and students from the College.  The design features state-of-the-art modular facilities with consolidated laboratories and write-up areas—all intended to improve efficiency and help interdisciplinary teams of researchers to collaborate more effectively.

"Many people from across the College and the University contributed to this successful approval," said Dean Rick Page in a message to the community after the board vote. "I am grateful for everyone who was engaged in moving this project forward."