The University of Maryland made progress on several of its on-campus construction and renovation projects while most students were gone for summer break.
Here is a look at the status of this university’s construction efforts.
Purple Line
Two-way traffic has resumed on Campus Drive between Alumni Drive and Regents Drive after six years of restriction to a single, one-way lane.
The road was initially converted to a one-way track as construction on the 16-mile light rail track ramped up on this university’s campus.
Purple Line construction efforts on campus are a year ahead of schedule and should be less disruptive this fall, Carlo Colella, this university’s vice president and chief administrative officer, announced in a campuswide email in August.
Campus Drive will revert to a one-way street once light rail testing begins in fall 2026.
The Purple Line will stretch from New Carrollton to Bethesda — with five stops on the University of Maryland campus — allowing students and community members access to Washington, D.C., and other Maryland suburbs.
Maddie Caiazzo, a freshman environmental science and technology major, said construction hasn’t had a big impact on her daily life this semester.
But she said she’s still looking forward to the projects finishing up on campus.
“I’m excited for the Purple Line,” Caiazzo said. “I feel like it will be very convenient.”
Freshman computer science major Timothy Cai said he’s not as sure.
“Sounds like it could be useful in the future, but also, I’ve heard that it’s been delayed for years by now,” Cai said. “I’ll have to see once it actually opens, if it opens while I’m still here.”
[Creative Commons cafe in Tawes Hall reopens after pandemic closure]
New baseball and softball practice facilities
Construction efforts continue for the new indoor, climate-controlled practice facility for Maryland baseball players.
The early demolition phase is complete for the baseball practice facility, and installation of foundations is underway, according to a statement from this university.
Both the Stanley Bobb Baseball Development Center and the Softball Player Development Center are expected to be completed by the end of this year, according to a news release from this university’s athletic department.
Cole Head House and Cultural Center
In an email to The Diamondback, this university said “construction continues” on the five student cultural centers in the Cole Head House. The interior demolition for the project is now complete, the email said.
The centers will include spaces for Latin, multiracial and biracial, Native American and Indigenous and Asian, Pacific Islander and Desi-American students. It will also host a center for students with disabilities, according to the project’s website.
They are expected to open by spring 2025, The Diamondback previously reported.
Barry P. Gossett Basketball Performance Center
The performance center will provide dedicated practice and conditioning spaces, new locker rooms and lounge and office spaces for this university’s men’s and women’s basketball teams.
Installation of the center’s underground utilities continues, and the installation of the concrete foundations is almost complete, according to a university statement to The Diamondback.
Installation of the center’s interior and exterior walls and glass is underway, the statement said. The next phase of work is slated to include laying the steel structure for the building.
The center is planned to be largely completed by summer 2025, according to a July news release from the athletic department.
Stanley R. Zupnik Hall
This 162,000-square-foot academic building will be the new home of this university’s civil and environmental engineering department.
The building, which boasts a price tag of about $215 million, is expected to open in 2026, according to its website.
Installation of the building’s underground utilities and concrete structure is ongoing, according to a university statement.
[UMD says major campus Purple Line construction is a year ahead of schedule]
Leonardtown graduate housing
This university is replacing the former Old Leonardtown Community, which previously housed about 625 undergraduate students, with a graduate student housing complex.
The university began demolition for the project last semester to make way for the apartment building, which will house about 800 graduate students, The Diamondback previously reported. The project is scheduled to open in time for the fall 2026 semester, according to a university statement.
“Given the project’s location on the edge of campus, minimal impacts to campus operations are expected,” this university wrote in a statement to The Diamondback.
Paint Branch Drive Cycle Pathway
This university completed work on a $150,000 project that started over the summer to convert one lane of Paint Branch Drive into a bike pathway, according to a university statement.
Fifth-year chemistry and biology major Toni Aderinwale said she’s happy about the increase in designated bike lanes on campus.
“It’s so much easier to get around campus now,” she said. “Interview me a year ago, I would have been like, ‘I hate this campus. Man, I hate everything.’ But right now I’m starting to see it’s improving, so I’m glad about that.”
