UC Berkeley is requesting an additional $37.72 million to construct Heathcock Hall, a new academic building for the College of Chemistry, with construction slated to finish by the end of 2027.
In a proposal to the UC Board of Regents’ Finance and Capital Strategies Committee, the UC Office of the President formally requested the committee recommend the Regents approve the $37.72 million augmentation, $22 million of which is from 30-year loans.
Heathcock Hall was planned with the intention of providing new laboratory and chemistry research space for the College of Chemistry, which had constructed its last building in 1997. In addition to modernized laboratories, the 81,700 gross-square-foot facility will host offices and other workspaces.
Heathcock Hall was initially announced in 2019, planning to break ground in 2021. Of its original planned $150 million budget, $90 million was from gifts and donations, $30 million through campus funds and another $30 million through state funds.
Due to financial constraints when the regents approved Heathcock Hall, however, plans included leaving three of its six stories empty, or as “shelled space.” These were expected to be built out when resources allowed.
The College of Chemistry broke ground on Heathcock Hall in May 2024. According to the proposal, completing the remaining floors would extend the completion of the Heathcock Hall project from the first quarter to the fourth quarter of 2027.
“By adjusting the timeline by a few months now, we can complete the entire building all at once,” said campus spokesperson Kyle Gibson in an email. “This saves significant university funding by taking advantage of construction infrastructure already in place—like the tower crane—and ensures that when students and faculty fully move in, their research won’t be interrupted by future construction impacts.”
Plans for Heathcock Hall were announced following a $25 million donation from UC Berkeley alumnus Terry Rosen and his wife, Tori Rosen. The building is named for chemist Clayton Heathcock, who was dean of the College of Chemistry from 1999 to 2005.
UC Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Nathan Brostrom previously approved budget augmentations of $5.73 million and $6.45 million to the Heathcock Hall project in January 2025 and February 2026, respectively. These augmentations were largely intended to support building modifications for future development of the shelled space.
Under the $37.72 million proposal, the university would use a mix of readily available campus funds and external financing to cover the cost. $15.72 million would be drawn from campus funds; the remaining amount, $22 million, would be covered through loans.
Anticipating an interest rate of 4.25%, UC Berkeley expects to pay the $22 million at around $1.31 million per year over a 30-year period. Gibson said no school or college budgets will be impacted.
“Heathcock Hall is essential for maintaining UC Berkeley’s world-class leadership in the field of chemistry. Many of our current chemistry buildings are decades old,” Gibson said in an email. “This new building will provide state-of-the-art, highly flexible laboratory spaces specifically tailored for cutting-edge synthetic, physical, and computational chemistry.”