Aggie Square’s state-of-the-art life sciences and education buildings take shape

There’s a sense of excitement about the rapidly evolving Aggie Square across from the School of Medicine’s education building, as the innovation district’s first structures take shape.

Throughout the fall and winter, School of Medicine leaders are participating in preview tours of the innovative Aggie Square Life Sciences, Technology and Engineering (LSTE) East and Life-Long Learning buildings with impressive panoramic views.

The seven-story state-of-the-art LSTE building is 326,000 square feet and will include a clinical skills/behavioral testing simulation lab, surgical skills center, gross anatomy lab, research laboratory suites, office spaces, and conference rooms. Private-sector biotechnology partners will also be housed in the building.

While the building’s initial multidisciplinary wet lab research teams are being finalized, the themes have been confirmed: neurosciences (including neural circuits and neuromodulation, neurotherapeutics, and neurodiagnostics), a center for surgical bioengineering and a cancer research hub exploring experimental therapeutics.

The adjoining Life-Long Learning building is 250,000 square feet and connects to the LSTE on the first and second floors. The building is designed to foster an environment where public- and private-sector partners join UC Davis to offer customized career training and education programs. 

UC Davis Continuing and Professional Education will be an anchor tenant of the Life-Long Learning building, along with the UC Davis Graduate School of Management and Quarter at Aggie Square undergraduate program. The building will offer classrooms, public meeting space and educational and workforce training opportunities for students, UC Davis employees and Sacramento community members. The building will also include computational office/dry lab space.

Both buildings are scheduled for occupancy in the first quarter of 2025.

“A tremendous amount of planning continues to take place with considerable input from departments across the School of Medicine, UC Davis Office of Research, collaborators from facilities, and multidisciplinary partners on both campuses,” said School of Medicine Vice Dean for Research Kim Barrett. “It’s exciting to see those plans starting to physically materialize as the interior of these buildings take shape. Aggie Square will be a world-class innovation and education hub based on multidisciplinary collaboration and groundbreaking public-private partnerships.”

Starting in October, School of Medicine leaders began preview tours of the Life-Long Learning building and LSTE East building. Tours for School of Medicine leaders, center directors, and other UC Davis Health leaders will continue into the new year as Aggie Square develops.

The first phase of Aggie Square includes 1.1 million square feet with five buildings and a 1,500-vehicle parking structure. It’s envisioned that UC Davis will use 60 percent of the space with private sector partners using the remaining space. The plan also includes 190 apartment units.

Aggie Square is a partnership among UC Davis, the City of Sacramento and developer Wexford Science + Technology that unites groundbreaking UC Davis research, companies and startups, and talent from across the community to create educational, research and economic opportunities in the Sacramento region.

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