UC Riverside will complete its initial move of some employees to a new office building this month as part of an effort to consolidate off-campus workers at one site.

University Advancement will have moved most of its employees to the new location by the end of October, following months of preparation work at the building.

UCR bought the building on Iowa Avenue, about two miles north of campus, last year. The purchase allowed the campus to move out of leased office at multiple sites into one shared building owned by the university.

The move is expected to provide substantial savings, said Sharyl Murdock, campus space manager.

University Advancement will occupy part of the second floor of the building. New carpet and furniture were installed while electrical and data wiring was completed to meet UCR requirements. Work began in June after a preexisting tenant left.

The suite includes private offices, cubicle workstations, a small conference room, a large multipurpose meeting room, a kitchen, a break room, and other support space. It is designed to accommodate hybrid schedules and shared workspaces.

University Advancement is the last of the UCR groups to make the move at this time. Business and Financial Services, Real Estate Services, Audit and Advisory Services, and the Center for Educational and Community Outreach Programs all moved into the building over the past year following similar renovations. Audit and Advisory Services is on the second floor while the other units are on the first floor.

The location at the Grove Business Park borders the Bourns Technology Center where UCR’s Center for Environmental Research and Technology, or CE-CERT, is located.

The two-floor building has 50,055 gross square feet, with 47,948 in office space, arranged in four large suites and three smaller ones. With the addition of University Advancement, UCR now occupies 50% of the building while two preexisting tenants have 23%. The rest is shared or unassigned space.

UCR expects to fill out the remainder of the unassigned space or leased space as those tenants leave in the next few years, Murdock said.

Over the past year, UCR has vacated leased space at University Village, a business park on Chicago Avenue, and in the Intellicenter on Meridian Parkway.