UIF Breaks Ground on Philanthropy Center at Former Feed Mill Site

The University of Illinois Foundation will soon begin construction on a new Center for Philanthropy in the Research Park.

The Foundation’s headquarters will move to the 60,000 square foot building. University leaders cited the building as an opportunity to serve as a hub of activity for its donors, partners and friends, as well as a home for its development professionals.

Target completion of the project is expected in 2023.

“We are thrilled that we will be neighbors to the Research Park,” said James H. Moore, Jr., Foundation president/CEO, at a groundbreaking ceremony on May 9.

The building site is on the south side of the University of Illinois Urbana‑Champaign campus, where the old feed mill used to stand at the corner of Fourth Street and St. Mary’s Road. It sits next door to the I Hotel and Conference Center, and across the street from State Farm Center and other Illini athletics facilities.

The Foundation’s workforce has grown from 14 employees in 1974 to more than 170 employees today.  Once the Philanthropy Center is open, the team will consolidate operations there. Most notably, it will vacate the historic Harker Hall — which sits next to the Illini Union on the main Quad — a building the Foundation restored in the early 1990s. Harker Hall will return to campus control.

In addition to employee workspaces, the building will include facilities for hosting alumni and friends including a third-floor indoor/outdoor space with a terrace featuring an excellent view of campus. The building will also serve as a learning hub for the entire University of Illinois advancement community with space for peer-to-peer collaboration, training, and professional development.

The project will be chronicled through photos and videos on the University of Illinois Foundation website.