Updates on major building and renovation projects underway and nearing completion at Miami University
A Sustainability Park and solar fields on Miami’s Western campus; the Advanced Manufacturing Workforce and Innovation Hub next to the Miami Regionals Hamilton campus; and the construction of the new Chestnut Street Station multimodal transportation hub in Oxford are major projects underway and nearing completion at Miami University.
Renovation of the iconic Bachelor Hall is ongoing with a summer 2026 completion date.
Opening fall 2025
Installation of Miami’s two ground mount solar photovoltaic (PV) fields, situated above the Western Geothermal well field and at the former site of Thomson Hall, began in May 2025. The solar fields will be part of the Sharon and Graham Mitchell Sustainability Park, made possible by a $5 million principal gift from longtime Miami and sustainability supporters, Sharon Janosik Mitchell ’73 and Graham Mitchell ’73, M.En. ’76.
The park will encompass the solar fields, walking paths, and connect to nearby trails in Miami University’s Natural Areas, with a grand entrance facing State Route 73.
By later this fall — once the solar installations are complete and connected to the electric grid — the two solar arrays are expected to start producing more than 2,000 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity annually, according to project director Joel Fellman, electrical engineer and project manager for Miami’s physical facilities department.
Read the story: Solar field installations begin at the site of the Sharon and Graham Mitchell Sustainability Park
Opening January 2026
The Advanced Manufacturing Workforce and Innovation Hub is a cutting-edge partnership between Miami University and Butler Tech Career Technical Center. It aims to develop an educated workforce and will serve as a catalyst for community economic growth.
The property at 101 Knightsbridge Drive in Hamilton — previously the Vora Technology Park, adjacent to Miami Regionals Hamilton campus — will open January 2026. Butler Tech and Miami will initially occupy 70,000 square feet each, with room to grow in the 300,000-square-foot facility, with additional space for regional manufacturers to co-locate on-site.
Students will have access to a variety of distinctive pathways to meet all levels of need in the manufacturing sector — from associate degrees, industry-recognized credentials and Microcredentials, to degrees in robotics, electro-mechanical engineering, and more.
Visit the website to learn about the workforce partners, program offerings, and more: Advanced Manufacturing Workforce and Innovation Hub
The transportation hub opens September 2025; New BCRTA bus routes begin in August with fall semester
Chestnut Street Station, a multimodal transportation center at 97 W. Chestnut St. that broke ground in January 2024, will open in September 2025.
The station will become the central hub for updated Butler County Regional Transit Authority (BCRTA) bus routes. The new routes — which begin before the start of fall semester in August — focus on convenience and will be more direct, according to BCRTA.
Read the story and check out the new bus routes: Chestnut Street Station, new BCRTA bus routes coming this fall
Construction is expected to be completed by summer 2026
Renovations began in June 2024 on Bachelor Hall — its first major overhaul since it was built in 1978. The $72 million, two-year project will consolidate space, modernize classrooms, and create an environment for interdepartmental collaboration. With 20 classrooms and 141 offices, Bachelor will expand its square footage from 112,000 to 120,418 by project’s end.
As one of Miami's most heavily used classroom buildings, this renovation will impact almost all Miami students. University architect Robert Bell said one of the biggest changes will be enclosing the existing courtyard into an atrium space, with a large skylight bringing natural light into the building.
Other new features will include a modern TV studio; the Bachelor Great Room, a 68-person multifunctional space for events and teaching; and a dedicated event space for the Humanities Center.
Read the story: Renovations reshaping Bachelor Hall as a hub for the humanities
Well drilling completed summer 2025; full project to be completed by summer 2026
Drilling was completed in May 2025 for the North Chiller Plant Geothermal Conversion project. The next phase involves converting the equipment in the North Chiller Plant (formerly Billings Hall) to support simultaneous heating and cooling and geothermal exchange.
This project is the next big step toward reducing carbon emissions and achieving carbon neutrality on our Oxford campus by 2040.
This geothermal expansion will eliminate more than 5,810 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents in emissions (MTCO2e) annually on the Oxford campus.
Read the story: “Expanding geothermal on Miami’s campus: North Chiller Plant conversion to geothermal project”
