Despite months of setbacks due to funding shortages, construction on the Science Center has been slowly picking up, and the project received a necessary boost recently from the D.C. Council.

According to D.C. Councilmember Jack Evans (D-Ward 2), the industrial revenue bond the council granted last week allows the university to borrow at a lower interest rate. The majority of Georgetown’s industrial bond – part of a program available to federal qualifying institutions, such as university hospitals and nonprofit organizations – is set aside for the Science Center.

The 154,000-square-foot Science Center – 1,000 feet smaller than the original projection in January 2010 – is expected to cost $100 million, approximately half of which will be paid for by philanthropic grants and the other half through debt, according to College Dean Chester Gillis. Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the federal government also contributed funding.

“Everyone has noticed that the Science Center is now rising out of the ground,” Gillis said in an email. “It took several months to prepare the below-ground structure before concrete could be poured. During that time there was little visible evidence of progress but now we all see the building take shape.”

Recently, construction crews have begun working on Saturdays in order to keep construction on schedule, Gillis said.

“For the next six to nine months, the exterior of the building will continue to be constructed to be followed by the interior work,” Gillis said. Since the building will be home to the biology, chemistry and physics departments and requires more sophisticated equipment and labs, this interior work is specialized.

The building shell should be completed by September 2011, according to Associate Director of Communications Rachel Pugh. The focus of construction will then shift to outfitting the interior, a process that will last until fall 2012.

“[Caissons] – part of the foundation system – have been drilled and set, and utility work has started,” Pugh said about the center. “Steel and concrete work will begin this week.”

“The new Science Center building is aiming for [Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design] Silver Certification for New Construction,” according to the website of Whiting-Turner, the contracting company hired to complete the building.

The building will aesthetically match its surroundings.

“The exterior of the building will be a combination of glass and brick, mirroring the [Rafik B.] Hariri Building,” Gillis said. “A grass quad will be between the two buildings, each of which will connect with the Leavey Center via a new terrace and quad.”

Students across campus have noticed the construction, or previous lack thereof.

“It seems kind of slow, but I guess I can’t blame them if they’re running out of money. It’s supposed to be finished in [2012], so that’s kind of slow. But I’ve seen the cranes moving and people are there, so I know something is happening,” physics major Dana Mastropole (COL ’12) said.

“Earlier in the semester, construction seemed to be stalled. However, now it looks like it’s starting to pick up speed,” Aaron Fouladian (MSB ’11) said.

Students still have concerns about the actual setup of the building.

“I’m excited about it. I think there are some problems. I know they’re capping the building so it’s not supposed to be as high as it was originally,” Mastropole said she learned from one of her science professors. “We’ll still have labs in [the] Reiss [Science Building]. . They’re also mixing departments on the floors, which is inconvenient.”

Ultimately however, students are happy to hear that work on the Science Center is speeding up.

“After many months of delays, it’s simply reassuring to see construction finally underway. For science majors, the new Science Center not only represents the opportunity to study and conduct research in brand new facilities, it also offers Georgetown the ability to expand the size and scope of its biology, chemistry and physics programs by hiring more faculty and enrolling more students,” Jess Hebert (COL ’12) said.

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