October Building Briefs
NORTHEAST
• An initial mega-donation has been made for a new 200,000-square-foot law school to be built on the western edge of Syracuse University in Syracuse, N.Y. Officials announced that a $15 million donation was made by three siblings in memory of their parents who were graduates of the school. The largest donation in the history of the 115-year-old lay school kicked off a fundraising campaign for the construction project, estimated to cost $85 million – $90 million. At this early stage of fundraising, there are not yet plans for the design or appearance of the new law school, nor is there a scheduled start of construction. Gluckman Mayner Architects, a New York City-based firm, will be the project’s lead architect.
MID-ATLANTIC
• The Tennessee School Bond Authority approved plans to issue $2.3 million in low-interest bonds to Sullivan County school officials for the expansion and renovation of the 34,680-square-foot Emmett Elementary School in Bristol, Tenn. Plans call for the addition of six new classrooms onto Emmett’s main building. This addition was originally planned to take place during the rebuild of the elementary school between 1999 and 2001, but the district ran out of money for the project. The six additional classrooms would enable the 200-student school to accommodate another 140 students currently in attendance at Valley Pike Elementary School.
SOUTHEAST
• The Valencia Community College Board of Trustees announced Hunton Brady Architects are designing a new $28 million building to be built at the Kissimmee campus in Osceola County, Fla. The campus had 9,619 students last fall, up from 5,661 in fall 2006, making it the fastest growing of the college’s four Central Florida campuses. The new building will feature a 100,000-square-foot classroom, a lab and a library. $21.8 million in state funding was received this year for the project. Another $4 million is expected from the state next year, and $5 million was pledge by the county. Design and site work are currently under way, and construction is expected to begin by July 2011 and take a year to complete.
MIDWEST
• Cost-cutting measures have resurrected plans for a new high school, slated to be to be built in Columbia, Mo. The school construction project, was previously $7.8 million over the $75 million budget, is now estimated to be $79,211 under budget. This news comes after the Columbia School Board voted on cost reductions and bid packages recommended by project manager JE Dunn Construction Co., which saved over $5 million. Some of these cost-cutting changes include the use of different floor and ceiling materials, and different turf and asphalt compositions.
• Dual groundbreaking ceremonies were held for Albany State University’s new residence halls and student center in Albany, Ga. The two new residence halls will include a 400-bed 99,294-square-foot freshman dorm. The dorm for returning students, a 79,618-square-foot building, will include 226 beds and will be located in the loop of the University Drive near the ACAD Building. Lord, Aeck & Sargent Architecture partnered with Chasm Architecture on the residence halls, and the price tag for the project is estimated at $23 million. Juneau Construction Co. will be the contractor on both the residence hall and student center projects. The new student center will include a two-story addition and will give the existing dining hall building an additional 60,000 square feet. The estimated total cost for the student center project is $15.8 million. Both projects are scheduled to be completed by next fall.
PACIFIC
• Construction work is underway on an expansion and renovation project at the existing Feinberg and Myers halls in the Talbot Building Complex at Biola University in La Mirada, Calif. The first phase of the $52.2 million project will include construction of a 30,617-square-foot building next to Feinberg Hall that will include 10 classrooms, 34 offices, two conference rooms, a meeting room, seminar room and prayer chapel. Phase One is expected to be completed next July. Assuming the university’s fundraising efforts go well, Phase Two of the project is scheduled to begin next summer. Plans include the demolition of Myers Hall and the construction of a 54,000-square-foot facility with 19 classrooms, 70 offices, a reading room, student lounge/cafe and recreation room.