The Naval Architecture Building on the UC Berkeley campus will undergo renovation and expansion to provide a space for the Blum Center for Developing Economies.

The UC Board of Regents' Grounds and Buildings Committee approved plans for the renovation Feb. 3. The project still requires a final agreement to be made between the campus and the Blum Center Foundation, which is financing the project.

The $15 million project is scheduled to begin by the end of April and is expected to be finished by summer 2010, according to Scott Shackleton, assistant dean for capital projects and facilities for the College of Engineering.

The renovated building will include new offices, student facilities, meeting rooms and will be upgraded seismically to meet life safety codes, Shackleton said.

The Blum Center for Developing Economies, established at UC Berkeley in 2006, works to combat poverty through research and education, said Phillip Denny, chief administrative officer for the Blum Center.

Currently the center's administrative offices are located in the Haas School of Business, while its teaching program and faculty are spread throughout the campus, Denny said.

Shankar Sastry, dean of engineering and director of the center, said the move would centralize the program.

"Students are doing amazing things and they need to have a forum to broadcast their experiences-and the bulk of the space at the center will be able to provide venues for doing that," Sastry said.

The Department of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research, which has worked in collaboration with the center, will also have a place within the renovated building, Shackleton said, allowing additional space for faculty and administrative staff.

The Naval Architecture Building was designed in 1914 by John Galen Howard, UC Berkeley's first campus architect, and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

The building is currently used by construction crews and is not in use by faculty or students.

Despite the renovations, the building's exterior is not expected to change significantly, according to Christine Shaff, communications manager for facilities services on campus.

"We are sensitive to the historic details of the building and we design any changes to be sensitive to their historic nature," Shaff said.

Tags: UC REGENTS, RICHARD C. BLUM