ConDig (07-Jul-17). Skanska has secured a $41 million contract to build a research and education tower in Tampa, Florida.

Under the deal with the University of South Florida, the company will construct the Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute, which will be located in the downtown area of the city.

The tower will feature an expected 14 levels and total about  38,000 square meters.

Construction is slated to start in August and the project is expected to be complete in December 2019.

The project forms part of a wider $3 billion redevelopment of the city’s downtown area, which will be a 9-million-square-foot scheme and take about nine years to complete.

The Water Street Tampa mixed-use complex will feature the first new downtown office building in 25 years, a mix of 1,400 condominiums and apartments, two hotels and retail.

The developer of the project is Strategic Property Partners, which is a joint venture between Bill Gates’ Cascade Investment and Jeff Vinik, the owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning NHL team.