(PHOTO COURTESY OF WILLIAM RAWN ASSOCIATES)
Significant work is occurring behind the scenes on the construction of the Armstrong Student Center as the project marches steadily towards ground breaking.
Susanne Sadler, director of development for the Armstrong Student Center (ASC), discussed the latest updates on the new facility. Sadler said the construction of the interior and exterior of the ASC is complete — that is, scale models of both have been completed and were unveiled publically last week.
"The Board of Trustees were in for committee meetings and we wanted to give them an update on the project by sharing with them the actual model of the Armstrong Student Center," Sadler said. "The model is to scale and about the size of a ping-pong table. The neat thing about it is that the model can be taken apart at different levels so rooms can be examined in further detail."
John Seibert, senior project manager of the ASC, said along with the board roughly 60 people, including representatives from Associated Student Government and student affairs, viewed the models. He said the feedback was very positive. However, he also explained that the model isn't merely eye candy.
"We're using it as a tool to design," Seibert said. "They've been working on this model for six months now and they continue to work on it to visualize new developments. They do this after putting pen to paper to be able to physically visualize and work with spaces."
According to Siebert, in May the remainder of the facilities still operating out of Gaskill Hall, such as the print services, will be moved out and the interior gutting of the building will begin. During this process, Siebert said all sorts of extra work could be uncovered, such as ensuring the structure is up to building standards.
"We always build what's called ‘float' into our schedule. Things like finding a wall that needs to be additionally reinforced is negative float, it impacts your schedule. The ability to get things done faster on a critical task, such as getting the steal superstructure for the infill where the parking lot is done faster because of good weather, you build positive float," Seibert said. "We have all these days already accounted for so that we make sure that things get done on schedule."
While the models have been completed, fundraising is still underway to begin the physical construction of the center. Sadler explained where the financing of the student center now stands.
"We're currently at about $25.5 million that we've raised. Our goal is to hit between $28 and $30 million," Sadler said. "Once we've reached that mark, then it's all a go to start the building process, beginning with the gutting of Rowan and Gaskill Halls, which is slated to begin late summer."
According to Sadler, student fees will help make up the rest of the $52 million price tag for the student center.
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"Once $30 million has been raised, the student fee component will then kick in and pay for the rest of the building," Sadler said. "That doesn't mean we're going to stop fund raising after $30 million, we'll still to be out there and continuing to fundraise and anything incremental we raise will help to reduce student fees."
Students will be asked to pay roughly $120 per student per semester beginning when the building is opened. However, Sadler said this means future students will only be paying $60 in tuition more than current students, as all students presently pay $60 dollars towards past rec center renovations. By the time new students will be paying tuition towards the ASC, these fees will no longer be collected, making the $120 fee truly a $60 increase when compared to current tuition.
"We had 63 naming opportunities within phase one and we currently have about 38 of those opportunities left," Sadler said. "Now we have naming opportunities from $7 million all the way down to $50,000. The smaller meeting rooms run around the lower price and the largest naming opportunity we have left is to name the ‘center for student engagement and leadership.'"
General naming opportunities will also be offered at a display for ASC at this summer's alumni weekend. According to Sadler, these opportunities will cost from $200 to $20,000 and will not be for naming a space but rather for having the donor's name featured somewhere in the building.
Sadler said a tentatively scheduled fall 2011 groundbreaking ceremony is in the works. After that, it's only a matter of time before the completed center is unveiled.
"We're still looking at that January 2014 date," Sadler said. "But there is an outside possibility that, depending on whatever they run into when they start doing the deconstruction of these buildings, ready by the fall semester of 2013, which would be great."
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