Season of Building Dedications Continues

Wells College dedicates its new science building this weekend (Wells College photograph)

Wells College will dedicate a new 45,000-square-foot science building, Ann Wilder Stratton ’46 Hall, this weekend. The $19-million facility was designed by Holt Architects, of Ithaca, N.Y.

Raritan Valley Community College dedicated its new 44,500-square-foot classroom building Tuesday. The facility, known as the West Building, cost $15-million and was designed by SSP Architectural Group, of Somerville, N.J. It contains 18 classrooms and a multimedia lab.

Southwest Baptist University rededicated its 22,000-square-foot Jim Mellers Center Monday after a $1.5-million renovation overseen by Gaskin Hill Norcross Architects and Engineers. The building, originally a conference center, was reconfigured to house the university’s Courts Redford College of Theology and Ministry. It now has eight classrooms, faculty offices, and a lounge for students.

Pace University and a private student-housing developer, Educational Housing Services, have opened a 500-bed residence hall in a renovated Manhattan building at 55 John Street. Undertaken as part of Pace’s effort to create a full-service campus for itself in lower Manhattan, the project created double and triple rooms with private baths, a top-floor lounge, and fitness and laundry facilities. But some students have complained about the building’s $7,215-per-semester cost, which is $2,000 more than the cost of living in a building the university owns in Brooklyn.