UMD Social Work Building Nears Midpoint with Ambitious Green Design

Construction of the University of Maryland School of Social Work building advanced significantly through 2025, with columns and walls poured, major utilities relocated and mechanical infrastructure progressing across the site at Greene and West Lexington streets. General contractor Whiting-Turner released aerial images and a timelapse documenting work from Jan. 1 through Dec. 1, 2025. As of Jan. 1, 2026, the six-story, 127,400-square-foot project was approaching its midpoint; a topping-off ceremony is set for next month and the building is scheduled to open in the second half of 2027.

The project’s sustainability features are central to its design. Forty-two geo-exchange wells have been drilled and pressure tested to feed about 10 miles of piping that will support geothermal heating and cooling. The building is configured to use about 65 percent less energy than a traditional building of comparable size and will operate without on-site fossil fuel use. Designers aim for LEED Gold certification and aspire to achieve LEED Platinum plus LEED Net Zero Energy through a combination of geothermal exchange wells, chilled beam systems, on-site solar panels and an outdoor roof garden.

For Baltimore residents and city planners, those performance goals matter beyond campus boundaries. A roughly 65 percent reduction in energy demand can materially reduce long-term operating expenses for a large institutional building, lowering utility outlays and the university’s carbon footprint. The project also signals continued institutional investment in West Baltimore, with potential spillovers into local construction employment, supply chains and neighborhood stability as the building becomes an anchor for academic and community activity.

The site has already served educational purposes during construction. A Construction Day welcomed employees’ children to see the site safely, and School of Medicine students visited as part of an occupational and environmental medicine elective, offering hands-on learning about workplace safety and building systems. The university and the Maryland State Arts Council announced two commissioned art installations for the building by Kipp Kobayashi and LaToya D. Peoples, adding cultural value to the project footprint.

Residents seeking further information can consult the School of Social Work Building Project website and the construction newsletter for updated schedules, traffic advisories and public engagement opportunities as the project moves toward topping off and eventual occupancy in 2027.