EVANSTON, Ill. --- Construction has started on the renovation and expansion of Searle Hall, home of University Health Service.

The improvement project will modernize existing facilities and add approximately 29,250 gross square feet to the east side of the building at 633 Emerson St. The site of the proposed addition is the small parking lot located east of the building and west of the north-south alley that will be eliminated. The expected completion date of the addition is late fall 2009.

Renovation of the existing building will start after the addition is completed and is expected to be finished in late summer 2010.

A key feature of the plan is to separate spaces for clinical services from faculty and staff offices. Physicians now use the same room as an examination room and an office. Most of the clinical space will be in the addition while the existing structure will undergo renovation. The remodeling will provide more space for laboratories, medical records, supplies, health education and Counseling and Psychological Services. The layout, including the reception/waiting area, will be designed to protect patients' privacy.

In addition to infrastructure improvements, plans call for installation of an elevator and an open communicating stairway that will provide access to the three levels of the health clinic. The building is now served by one elevator and two stairways.

The project will also include a new landscaped entrance plaza.

The Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust has made a $1 million grant to Northwestern University for the Searle Hall improvements. The gift is in honor of John G. Searle, whose $800,000 gift made possible construction of the original health center. Mr. Searle, then president of G.D. Searle and Co. and vice president of the board of trustees, attended the dedication of the facility with his wife Frances and their children and grandchildren in 1961.

The Searle Family said that it "is delighted to support the renovation and expansion of Searle Hall. This gift will enable Searle Hall to meet the health care needs of current and future students, thus extending John G. Searle's legacy of excellence in healthcare and dedication to Northwestern for many future generations of Northwestern students."