Demolition of the old Franklin Street Gymnasium on the campus of Virginia Commonwealth University is underway. The long vacant building at 817 W. Franklin St. is being cleared to make way for a $121 million, six-story building that will be devoted to classes and programs involving STEM—science, technology, engineering and math. The goal is to increase the number of VCU graduates heading into those high-demand fields. Construction of a new building on the old gym site has been planned for some time and gained the green light a year ago from the General Assembly and Gov. Ralph S. Northam.
