What's that near the University of Tennessee entrance? Soon, the biggest building on campus

The University of Tennessee at Knoxville has broken ground on a new Haslam College of Business building, a $227 million project that will help the college continue to grow with 18 classrooms across five floors near the corner of Volunteer Boulevard and Cumberland Avenue.

A groundbreaking was held Aug. 21, but construction first required the demolition of Dunford, Greve and Henson halls in May.

The state-of-the-art Haslam building replacing the former dorms is slated to open in fall 2027 and will be the largest building on campus, Chancellor Donde Plowman said. The facility will focus on serving freshman and sophomore students, while the existing Haslam building will provide classroom space for juniors and seniors.

"This lot that we received from the campus is just a perfect space for a big, beautiful building right at the entrance to the campus," Assistant Dean Betsy Adams told Knox News. "I'm really excited about the place we're able to put it and the big trees."

The new facility will promote collaboration and could attract talented prospective students to join one of the college's nationally ranked programs. Dean Stephen Mangum said enrollment in the college has doubled since he joined in 2013.

The building will include:

• 243,800 square feet across five floors, which is enough space to accommodate 10,000 people
• Eighteen classrooms, including two auditoriums, each with a capacity of 300 people
• A new home for the college's seven academic departments, as well as the Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and the Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research
• Meeting spaces, food service, offices and common areas
• Three research laboratories

Mangum and Plowman − along with UT System President Randy Boyd and the college's namesake, Jim Haslam − spoke at the groundbreaking event.

Keenan Thomas is a higher education reporter. Email keenan.thomas@knoxnews.com . X, formerly known as Twitter @specialk2real .

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: What's that near the University of Tennessee entrance? Soon, the biggest building on campus