Monthly Archives: March 2011

March 31, 2011, 5:54 am

Shop Talk: Thursday, March 31

A new, 22,000-square-foot building will quadruple the amount of space available for cooking programs at Santa Rosa Junior College. (Santa Rosa Junior College rendering)

• $20-Million Culinary-Arts Facility Due in December at Santa Rosa Junior College

• U. of Southern Mississippi Plans $36-Million Business-School Building

• Elon U. Will Start Construction of a 320-Bed Apartment Complex This Summer

• U. of Florida Looks for $110-Million for Student-Union Renovation

March 30, 2011, 8:30 am

Shop Talk: Wednesday, March 30

By Lawrence Biemiller

A new student center at the U. of the District of Columbia will have a small fitness center, conference and ballroom facilities, dining services, a bookstore, and retail space. (Cannon Design rendering)

• U. of District of Columbia Chooses Architect for Student-Center Project

• U. of Utah Will Build $16-Million Facility for Football Team

• Central Louisiana Technical College Plans Expansion for Campus in Ferriday

• New York U. Starts Construction of Main Building for Shanghai Campus

March 29, 2011, 9:53 am

Shop Talk: Tuesday, 29 March

By Lawrence Biemiller

A renovation and expansion paid for by students added 65,000 square feet to the recreation center at Colorado State University’s main campus, in Fort Collins. (Colorado State U. photo)

• Colorado State U. Completes $32-Million Renovation of Student Recreation Center

• Stern Will Design Another Building for Wright’s Florida Southern College Campus

• ‘Hybrid’ Stoplight/Crosswalk Gets a Tryout at U. of Colorado at Boulder

• Southeast Missouri State U. Plans $38-Million in Renovations and Improvements

March 28, 2011, 8:20 am

Shop Talk: Monday, March 28

By Lawrence Biemiller

• Northwestern U. Plans to Replace Innovative Prentice Women’s Hospital With Research Building (Preservation Chicago photo)

• 2.2-Megawatt Solar Facility Opens at U. of Maryland—Eastern Shore

• U. of Mary Hardin-Baylor Anticipates ‘Taj Mahal of a Football Stadium’

• High-School Student’s Design Wins Competition for Community College’s Satellite Facility

March 25, 2011, 9:46 am

Shop Talk: Friday, March 25

By Lawrence Biemiller

A 392-bed housing complex for U. of Oklahoma athletes will be constructed in a style the university refers to as “Cherokee Gothic.” (Rendering by Studio Architecture & Newman Architects)

• U. of Oklahoma Will Replace Athletes’ Housing With $75-Million Residence Hall

• Floodwaters Recede on Carleton College’s Campus (Carleton College photo)

• U. of Georgia Takes Over Former Navy Supply Corps School Site Today, Plans Health-Science Campus

• Population Dislocation: Residents Say Columbia U. Construction Causes a Rat Problem on the Upper West Side

March 24, 2011, 12:30 pm

Lack of Matching Grants in Florida May Stifle Donations for Building

By Scott Carlson

A program in Florida that offers matching state money for private donations has not been supported since 2008, reports The Miami Herald. This has left some building projects stranded, with state-college officials worrying about how the lack of funding might affect donations in the future. The state’s program for facilities is the most generous, matching dollar for dollar.

But the Legislature hasn’t funded the programs since 2008, leaving universities waiting on a total of nearly $300-million in state matches. The state’s colleges are waiting on another $220-million to be matched through similar programs.

Universities and the Board of Governors say restoring the funding to the programs is a legislative priority. They worry that continuing to leave them unfunded could have a chilling effect on private donations. In many cases, universities are fronting the money from the state with…

March 24, 2011, 9:50 am

Shop Talk: Thursday, March 24

By Lawrence Biemiller

A 122,000-square-foot building at Colorado State U. will accommodate increased enrollment in the College of Engineering. (Colorado State U. rendering)

• Colorado State U. Will Break Ground Next Month for Engineering-Research Building

• Inn at Penn Renovations Focus on Sustainability

• Historical Commission Report Stalls Northeastern U. Plan for 17-Story Residence Hall

• Memphis Theological Seminary Preserve 1912 Beaux-Arts Mansion

March 23, 2011, 9:18 am

Shop Talk: Wednesday, March 23

By Lawrence Biemiller

A new plant at the U. of Northern British Columbia converts wood waste from a local sawmill into gas for the campus heating plant. (U. of Northern British Columbia photo)

• U. of Northern British Columbia Opens Biomass-Gasification Plant

• $12-Million Gift Will Let Sonoma State U. Complete Performance Complex

• U. of Louisiana at Lafayette Works to License 2009 Solar Home Design

• Stevenson U. Proceeds With Plan for $7-Million, 3,500-Seat Stadium

March 22, 2011, 2:51 pm

Western Michigan Sets Up Charging Stations for Electric Cars

By Scott Carlson

It’s a pretty good news week for Western Michigan University: Just as the university announced that it had gotten a $100-million gift for its proposed medical school, news outlets were also buzzing about new electric-vehicle charging stations that had been set up on the campus. The announcement ceremony included a visit by a U.S. senator who would be one of the first people to use the stations.

Sen. Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat who had sponsored legislation that offers rebates to people who buy electric vehicles, drove up to the ceremony in a Chevrolet Volt. (She had borrowed it from an alumnus who had just bought the car. Electric vehicles owned by professors were on display, and the university owns a couple of electric vehicles, too.)

Use of the charging stations will be free to owners of a special card distributed by ChargePoint America, a division of Coulomb…

March 22, 2011, 5:51 am