A rendering of the back of the proposed lecture hall at Merrimack College, 315 Turnpike St., North Andover.
NORTH ANDOVER -- Merrimack College plans to construct a two-story lecture hall as it sets its sights on accreditation as a top research school in the coming years.
The Planning Board held a public hearing on the construction plan Tuesday.
The proposal details a new 19,205 square-foot, two-story building on an acre of land on Merrimack College's campus at 315 Turnpike St. There would be five lecture-style classrooms built and no offices in the building designed as academic program space.
The project faces a limited site plan review by the Planning Board because it is protected by provisions under Massachusetts General Law for educational use.
The plan is to open the lecture hall in January 2026.
The building would be situated along Aherne Road and adjacent to Sullivan Hall in the "academic core of campus," Associate Vice President of Government, External Affairs & Institutional Projects Anthony Preston said.
The project also includes pathways to improve pedestrian flow, utility infrastructure, a stormwater management plan and landscaping.
The Department of Public Works and Health Department has no issues with the project, Planning Director Jean Enright reported. The Conservation Commission noted in a letter to Wright that the building's construction is out of their jurisdiction for review.
Preston said Merrimack College is looking to pivot to become a research institution. The goal is to be accredited as a Carnegie R2-classified research site within the next five to 10 years.
In order to achieve that status, Preston said the school has to bolster research on campus and attract "new talent" of faculty. The school wants faculty who can do research and also teach in a classroom, he said.
"This lecture hall is to get us moving toward that," Preston said.
"We know that we need additional classroom space so that's going to alleviate that issue as well. We're aiming that this lecture hall is going to propel us into the next academic atmosphere."
Planning Board Chair Eitan Goldberg said what makes a suburban-college campus in a town like North Andover more desirable is green space which students don't find as much if they attended a college in urban settings.
He said with all the new development plans, the campus' green space is shrinking and school officials and the project manager should be cognizant that something like grass to sit on enhances the college experience.
Goldberg was additionally critical of the building's design and how it looks from Route 114.
Designs for the building's facade feature glass paneling. He compared its back, which drivers passing by the college would see, to modular classrooms with a mixture of too many different masonry materials.
Board members said it looks "more industrial" than an academic space.
"We want to activate the campus, not the highway," Preston said, adding what's visible from the campus is designed for students to be an inviting place for learning and gathering outside.
He explained its placement would mix with some of the oldest buildings on campus and college officials want to make it more appealing for their student body.
Preston could not be reached for comment on the project's cost as of deadline.
The Planning Board will continue the public hearing on Nov. 12.