The old city of Fort Collins coal-fired power plant on North College is now the CSU Powerhouse Energy Campus. It took eighteen months and $18.5 million to expand the Colorado State University Engines and Energy Conversion Laboratory by 65,000 square feet.

The original building was constructed in 1936 and served as a coal-fired power plant for the city of Fort Collins. In the early 1990s, CSU turned it into the Engines and Energy Conversion Lab. The Powerhouse project also included renovating the original building.

The renovations combine the old with the new. According to an article by Kortny Rolston at Colorado State University:

CSU and The Neenan Company, which designed the addition and oversaw construction, took great care to preserve the historic look of the old plant - and maximize research. The old coal hopper will be replaced with a greenhouse in which researchers can grow biofuel feedstocks. The smokestacks will house four vertical-axis wind turbines. The old coal hopper will be replaced with a greenhouse in which researchers can grow biofuel feedstocks.

The Energy Institute at Colorado State University, which coordinates energy-related research across campus, is headquartered at the Powerhouse Energy Campus. Thirteen research centers are affiliated with the Institute.

CSU Powerhouse Energy Campus
Courtesy of The Neenan Company via CSU
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