Colorado State University celebrates groundbreaking of new $230M veterinary hospital

Two days after signing the bill allocating $50 million to the project, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis was at Colorado State University on Thursday for a groundbreaking ceremony for the university’s new Veterinary Health and Education Complex.

“You haven’t wasted any time; you’re breaking ground two days later,” Polis said. “That’s what I like about CSU.”

The CSU Board of Governors, who were on hand for the groundbreaking ceremony, approved $230 million for the state-of-the-art facility. In addition to the state’s contribution, funding is also coming from private donations, revenue bonds issued by the university and other sources. Lead donor Allen Hanano, a Denver businessman who was on hand for Thursday’s ceremony, pledged $2.5 million.

The 213,000-square-foot facility on the South Campus that houses its current veterinary medicine facilities is expected to be completed in time for the start of the 2026-27 school year. It will allow CSU to increase the number of incoming students in its veterinary medicine program by 30 each year, from 138 to 168, growing the total capacity from 600 students to 720, a school spokesperson confirmed Friday. The new facility will also open up space on CSU’s main campus for more than 275 students in undergraduate biomedical sciences and other programs.

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Polis and other speakers noted that research in CSU’s veterinary medicine program has led to breakthroughs in human health care and treatment as well. So, it’s not just animals that will benefit from the state’s investment into the new Veterinary Health and Education Complex.

The state’s contribution is coming from $247 million in state-authorized certificates of participation, which is also providing $128 million for a new medical school at the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley and new facilities at Metropolitan State University of Denver and Trinidad State College for training and certification programs for nurses and nursing and dental assistants.

Sue VanderWoude, dean of CSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, praised not only the increased capacity the new facility will bring but also the new technology that will be incorporated into its research, education and treatment programs.

Third-year veterinary student Eddie Valdez, president of the school’s 2025 graduating class, said the new facility “will make an already exceptional program even better."

CSU’s veterinary medicine program is ranked No. 2 nationally by U.S. News & World Report, behind the University of California-Davis.

CSU President Amy Parsons praised the work of CSU System Chancellor Tony Frank, a former veterinarian, and others for their continued advocacy for the project and thanked those involved in bringing it to fruition.

CSU’s current veterinary hospital, named in honor of former professor and dean James Voss, opened in 1978.

“I’m 48, but veterinary schools don’t age as well as people, and that’s why we need a new veterinary school for the new century,” Polis said. "This is truly a transformative investment in veterinary medicine.”

Reporter Kelly Lyell covers education, breaking news, some sports and other topics of interest for the Coloradoan. Contact him at kellylyell@coloradoan.com , x.com/KellyLyell and facebook.com/KellyLyell.news .

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado State University celebrates groundbreaking of new $230M veterinary hospital