WGBH’s move to a new state-of-the-art facility will be completed this summer, creating a new headquarters for the Boston-based public broadcaster.

The move consolidates WGBH’s operations from 12 scattered buildings into one connected structure that will soon house their 900 employees, and offers updated facilities to embrace new digital and multiplatform media.

Although the Brighton, Mass., complex is less than two miles away from WGBH’s previous location, the station described its move as a “seismic change”. “That’s in part because of the technology upgrade we’ll have, and in part because we’ll finally have space to welcome the public into our facility,” said WGBH Communication Vice President Jeanne Hopkins.

The new buildings will improve efficiency, allowing easier face-to-face collaboration among employees, and provide fiber-optic networking, enhanced computer capability, and improved file-retrieval systems, she said. A 30-by-45-foot “digital mural” of slowly changing images is attached to an outside wall and will be visible from about two miles away to commuters traveling up the Massachusetts Turnpike towards Boston. An extended sidewalk along the building will enable pedestrians to watch radio broadcasters through large, soundproof windows.

The new facility was erected using 90 percent recycled steel and will be equipped with solar panels, a “green” roof, motion-sensitive lighting and a water conservation system, to be more environmentally friendly. Plans for WBGH’s move were conceptualized in 2003 and construction began in May 2005. To pay for the new headquarters, WGBH raised $28 million in private donations and obtained low-cost loans. The move was prompted by Harvard University’s interest in WGBH’s previously occupied space, a portion of which was purchased by Harvard.