ORLANDO, Fla. — Locally based Williams Company Building Division began the Orange County (Fla.) Public Schools’ $28.5 million renovation to Boone High School in Orlando.

Williams Company Building Division is serving as general contractor for the $28.5 million Boone High School Capital Renewal and renovation project now underway.

The Capital Renewal portion of the project will lengthen the life of the school buildings, and the replacement of the auditorium will update that component of the Boone campus similar to auditoriums recently constructed on other Orange County (Fla.) Public Schools’ High School campuses. Bob Lipscomb, CEO of Williams Company, explained that the one challenge working on the Boone project(s) thus far has been the limited access due to the size of the property, and the close proximity to adjacent occupied buildings and houses.

The Capital Renewal project at Boone includes the demolition of the standing auditorium, which will be replaced by a new $11.5 million auditorium, as well as a refurbishment and expansion of the existing cafeteria, and replacing building components that are beyond their useful life in different school buildings. These replacements include new roofing and HVAC systems as well as a newly installed campus-wide fire alarm system.

The project will operate under six separate phases, with Phase I including constructing a new stormwater exfiltration system and Phase II involving the demolition and replacement of the new auditorium building as well as a track and baseball field renovation. Phase III consists of the construction of new gymnasium and Business/Law Magnet building, with Phase IV continuing construction on the auditorium and gym along with capital renewal work beginning on two buildings. Phase V and VI will be the beginning and end of construction on the new cafeteria.

“One unique aspect about the work we are doing at Boone High School is that we are actually orchestrating several smaller projects while operating and managing them as one large project,” said Lipscomb. “When we leave the Boone campus, we will have completed the Capital Renewal work, the auditorium replacement, gymnasium replacement, emergency generator and cafeteria renovation projects.”

The project broke ground in 2018 and is expected for completion in 2020.

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DELAND, Fla. — Stetson University in DeLand began construction on a $27 million expansion and renovation to its historic Carlton Union Building (CUB), with the help of Orlando, Fla.-based Williams Company Building Division. The refresh of the university’s central hub will help better serve students in the future.

The 62-year-old, two-story building will be transformed from a 52,000-square-foot to an 86,584-square-foot facility under three separate phases. The lobby, faculty lounge and Stetson Room are all included in the remodel, according to Williams Company’s CEO Bob Lipscomb.

Last August, the first floor of the new North Wing opened with a larger bookstore, post office and copy center as well as the CUB in the HUB information desk during the first phase of the project, according to the school’s website. After the second phase opens in August 2018, the third and final phase will bring a renovated South Wing with a new Coffee Shop, Faculty Lounge and a grander South Lobby at the end of 2018. The third phase also will include renovated offices for Hancock and other staff in Campus Life and Student Success on the second floor of the South Wing.

CUB initially opened in 1956 with all original mechanical and electrical systems in place when construction began. With the building existing at the center of student activity for the campus, it’s the university’s goal to bring the building up to modern standards for all of the systems, finishes and technology. Every portion of the building will be updated and brought up to code.

These updates come with a completely new electrical system, a backup generator for the entire building, an all-new HVAC system, a new fire sprinkler system, new standing seam roof, new windows throughout, a completely new kitchen and dining area, and new bookstore.

Lipscomb explained that the biggest challenge of the project for their team so far has been working around students in the current facility while they lounge and dine.

“The entire student body of the school eats all of their meals in this building, so we are surrounded daily by students and faculty,” said Lipscomb. “Before we demolished the existing kitchen we built a complete temporary kitchen in an adjacent metal building while the new kitchen was being built. The temporary kitchen will be utilized for about 15 months and then removed. But we are accustomed to working in high traffic areas and have many processes in place to address safety, traffic flow and temporary relocations of departments.”

The Commons dining hall and kitchen project also features an east-facing glass wall overlooking green space and a patio dining area. In addition to this, the expansion will make way for meeting rooms, a student lounge, a campus radio station and new offices for student groups.

“The CUB is our heartbeat,” said Kat Thomas, associate director of Student Development and Campus Vibrance, in a statement. “It is a place where students can find connections and know they belong throughout their experience. It is a student-owned space that will hopefully become integral to their meaning of being a Hatter.”

Completion of the new CUB is expected in the fall of 2018.

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