LEWISTON, Idaho (AP) — Construction is about halfway done at the University of Idaho's new research facility after officials spent nearly a decade planning the project.

The Lewiston Tribune reports construction on the $49-million facility at the Moscow campus began last summer and is slated to be finished by fall of 2016. Research vice president Jack McIver says plans for the building had already been in the works when he started at the school seven years ago.

The initial design has been adjusted to meet the school's new financial situation following the Great Recession.

The 69,000-square-foot interdisciplinary facility will bring chemists, biologists, economists and other experts together to study large-scale issues like wildfires.

Half the building will house laboratories while the rest is going to be multipurpose space.

More From News Radio 1310 KLIX