Busiest building at Colorado State University is getting a makeover
A 54-year-old building that ranks as the most heavily used on Colorado State University's Fort Collins campus will be getting a makeover.
The university says the three-phase project will cost between $120 million and $130 million. The Colorado legislature has appropriated $38 million for the first phase.
Built in 1968, the Clark Building houses nine departments within the College of Liberal Arts as well as the Department of Psychology in the College of Natural Sciences. The university says the 255,000-square-foot building serves 70% of undergraduate students in any given year, and 99% of students take at least one class in the building during their academic careers.
The revitalized Clark will include new private and shared spaces, the newest technologies in storage and layout for anthropology and history, and spaces for collaborative learning and scholarship.
“The pandemic showed us new ways of teaching and learning – we don’t want to lose those insights,” said Benjamin Withers, dean of the College of Liberal Arts. “The building will reflect that and reflect the future.”
the College of Liberal Arts will work with Facilities Management on a request for proposals process to determine the architect and builder, with a goal of breaking ground in late 2023 or summer 2024.
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Renovation will create a hub for Washington State University Spokane's medical school
Washington State University Spokane is renovating a 113,000-square-foot building on its campus and will make it the central hub for the university’s College of Medicine.
The $15.5 million project will overhaul the Phase One Building, previously known at the EWU Center when it was used by Eastern Washington University. Eastern Washington moved its programs out of the building last year, and since then it has been vacant.
WSU Spokane plans to add a student center, testing rooms, classrooms and faculty offices for the Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, reports the Spokane Spokesman-Review. The estimated completion date is mid-2023.
Built in 1991, the facility is named the Phase One Building because it was one of the first buildings constructed on WSU Spokane’s campus. The university plans to rename it.
The architect is Integrus Architects, and the builder is Bouten Construction.
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University of Albany in New York is converting former high school to a home for engineering school
A $75 million appropriation from the state of New York will enable the University of Albany to complete the conversion of the former Albany High School building to a home for the university's engineering college.
The 129,000-square-foot, 110-year-old facility in downtown Albany was home to Albany High from 1913 to 1974, and later was an elementary school and housed alternative education programs. The university announced in 2016 that the building would house its engineering school.
The renovation will provide modern labs and classrooms while preserving the core architectural elements of the building, says a news release from the office of Gov. Kathy Hochul.
The governor also announced that the renovated building will anchor a $200 million public-private artificial intelligence supercomputing initiative led by the university's college of engineering and applied sciences.
The initiative, dubbed Albany AI, "will empower university and industry researchers to harness massive data sets to better understand how to automate complex operations like diagnosing and treating disease and forecasting natural disasters," the governor's office says.
The renovated facility is scheduled for initial occupancy in late 2023 and full occupancy in 2025.
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Springfield, Ill., high school gets makeover
Lanphier High School in Springfield, Ill., is undergoing a $93.2 million overhaul.
The renovated building will have a commons area with a skylight that will connect the oldest section of the school at the front entrance, reports The State Journal-Register.
The district is also constructing a classroom addition behind that area.
Jennifer Gill, superintendent of the Springfield district, says the goal of the renovation is to preserve "the historical nature of Lanphier but yet make it to where it is completely redone and renewed inside."
Other improvements include a new auditorium, a 2,000-seat fieldhouse, an esports room, and an area for a construction trades program.
Memorial Stadium, home to Lanphier and Springfield High School athletics, will get a new field and a resurfaced track along with new locker rooms, a concession stand and restrooms.
Sangamon County voters approved a 1% sales tax hike to pay for school construction for districts in the county.
Most of the construction is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2023.
BLDD Architects, Inc. is the architect, and O'Shea Builders is the builder.
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Michigan State renovates, expands ice arena
Michigan State University is expected to complete renovations and additions this summer to the Munn Ice Arena on its East Lansing campus.
The university says the project includes construction of a new public "front door" to the facility, which opened in 1974 and is home to MSU's Division 1 hockey team.
The 35,000-square-foot addition will include new locker rooms, a 5,000-square-foot strength and conditioning room, hydrotherapy pools, shooting bays, and a players' lounge. Additionally, the new office space for coaches and staff will be elevated from underground.
University trustees approved the $26.7 million renovation in 2015, but the project has been delayed because of budget concerns related to Covid-19.
The architect is Rossetti.
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