Rendering of the new PFW Music Industry Building. Courtesy of Purdue University Fort Wayne and Design Collaborative.
The symbolic start of construction on a new $25 million, 26,000-square-foot music industry building on the campus of Purdue University Fort Wayne will take place Tuesday at 11 a.m.
Purdue Fort Wayne announces Tuesday groundbreaking ceremony for $25 million music industry building
Fort Wayne, Indiana (September 4, 2024) — The symbolic start of construction on a new $25 million, 26,000-square-foot music industry building on the campus of Purdue University Fort Wayne will take place Tuesday at 11 a.m.
Scheduled to be in attendance are members of the university community and other key supporters who have helped the project reach this important milestone. Among those who have been invited by PFW Chancellor Ron Elsenbaumer and John O’Connell, dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts, to take part in the program are State Rep. Matt Lehman, R-Berne; Ian Hyatt, Purdue University chief of staff to the president; and Chuck and Lisa Surack.
Rendering of the new PFW Music Industry Building. Courtesy of Purdue University Fort Wayne and Design Collaborative.
Fundraising for the state-of-the-art facility received a major boost in May 2023 with a $15 million budget allocation from the Indiana General Assembly. Forty percent of the money came from private donors, including matching $3 million lead gifts from the Auer Foundation and the Suracks, which were announced in August 2022.
The final decision to create an on-campus music industry building was made primarily in response to growing enrollment in PFW’s popular music, music industry, and music technology programs, but the original vision is just about as old as the School of Music itself. It opened in 2018.
In addition to giving current and prospective students more room to maneuver, university leaders believe this expansion also helps Fort Wayne with its goal of becoming a “Top 10 Music City” by the end of 2031.
The building will be connected via a second-floor skybridge to the existing PFW Music Center on the north side of the university’s Main Campus. This prime location along Mastodon Way is also where Tuesday’s groundbreaking ceremony will take place. Members of the media covering the event are encouraged to park in the P3 garage, which is easily accessible using either the St. Joe Road or Crescent Avenue entrances to campus.
In addition to what most would expect from an event of this nature, a special announcement about the name of the building, which is expected to be ready in time for the fall 2026 semester, will also be made during the program.
About Purdue University Fort Wayne
Purdue University Fort Wayne is the largest university in northeast Indiana and is part of the Purdue University system. Purdue Fort Wayne is uniquely positioned to serve the region as a crossroads of intellectual, social, economic, and cultural advancement. Rigorous academics are combined with a focus on student success across prestigious degree programs taught by more than 300 full-time faculty. More than 7,400 students of diverse ages, ethnicities, and nationalities pursue their education on the nearly 600-acre campus. A majority of the Mastodon Alumni Community’s 55,000+ living members reside and work in Indiana, which contributes significantly to the state’s economy, vitality, and intellectual strength. The university is a member of the Horizon League athletics conference, and fields 16 NCAA Division I sports teams. For more information, visit pfw.edu.
