PENSACOLA, Fla. — Pensacola State College recently broke ground on the east wing of its new STEM building on the Pensacola campus.

The project will be a Green Building Initiative, with a target goal of Three Globes certification that is equivalent to USGBC LEED Gold Certification.

Construction of the east wing will serve as the first phase of the project and will begin in January, following the abatement and demolition of the existing Mary Ellison Baars Building. The new facility will be a partial three-story steel-framed building and house mathematics, computer science, cyber security, aviation maintenance, advanced manufacturing programs and other high-tech programs. The east wing will be home to the college’s cyber security and mathematics programs.

The cost for the east wing is $13 million. The total cost for the entire facility is projected to be $34 million. A construction start date has not been set for the second phase that will include the west wing of the facility and second-floor connector.

The west wing and second-floor connector will be a total of 46,133-square feet and is projected to cost $21 million. Ajax Building Corp is the project’s general contractor, and Florida Architects designed the facility.

Pensacola State President Ed Meadows said the facility is a necessity.

“We badly need the space for our cybersecurity degree program which has quadrupled in enrollment since it was first offered in fall 2016,” said Meadows.

With 15 stackable nationally recognized certifications leading to the associate of science and bachelor of applied science degrees, the new STEM building will be state-of-the-art for high-demand high-wage jobs. Once the entire facility is completed, it will be home to the college’s computer science, aviation maintenance and advanced manufacturing programs.

“We also wanted to lock in the construction costs before Jan. 1. Right now, we have sufficient funding for the east wing with the majority of funds coming from the state Public Education Capital Outlay (PECO) allocation,” said Meadows.

“Realizing the importance of local workforce needs, the Escambia County Commission, the Santa Rosa County Commission and the City of Pensacola also have allocated funds for the project. With leadership and vision, these local stakeholders are to be commended for their support.”

In addition to cybersecurity and math programs, the 25,389-square-foot east wing will house math tutorial labs and office space. The first phase is projected to be in use by May 2020.

The STEM facility will replace the Baars Building (Building 1), which was originally constructed in 1956. The facility was named for the matriarch of the Baars family in recognition of their role in making the property available for the College’s Pensacola campus.

The project will include the demolition of the existing Baars Building and site improvements, such as new utilities, storm drainage systems, parking areas and roadways, including the installation of a new entrance road, which will be initially used for a construction entrance. Additionally, the site will also undergo new hardscaping, landscaping and irrigation.

The new facility will also provide training for 200 to 300 new jobs coming to the region. In addition to housing high-tech programs, the new Baars building will also provide space for a collaborative partnership with an adult learning and support program.

The completion date for the facility is set for October 2019.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The University of Florida (UF) in Gainesville earned LEED Gold certification on Aug. 21 for Newell Hall for its efforts in sustainability for the newly renovated facility. The remodeled building opened on April 20 after close to two years of renovations.

Schenkel Shultz in Orlando, Fla., was the architect on the project, with Robert A.M. Stern Architects out of New York as the associate architect. AJAX Building Corp. out of Tallahassee, Fla., was the construction manager on the project. Design on the building began in February of 2015, with construction starting nine months later in November. The project had a budget of $19 million for the 36,000-square-foot building.

The goals of the renovation and repurposing of Newell Hall — originally built in 1910 — were to create a unique and modern 24/7 “Learning Commons” to support student learning and collaboration outside the classroom. From an operational standpoint, the primary goal was to repair and restore the building’s structure and exterior envelope, while adding a modern and energy-efficient central HVAC system.

The greenest feature of all that enabled the building to achieve LEED Gold status for Newell Hall “might be the fact that an existing building was repurposed in a way that is both compliant with modern codes, and still respectful of the original [exterior] character,” according to Dustin Stephany, UF’s sustainable building coordinator. Other features include low-flow water fixtures, water-efficient landscaping strategies  — including wastewater going into a treatment facility and being reused for landscaping — low-emission paints and materials, and energy efficient equipment and lighting.

Over 20 percent of construction materials included recycled content and were sourced within the southeast region of U.S. The new HVAC system is predicted to be about 20 percent more efficient than in a traditional building as related to what codes and industry standards ordinarily require.

The four floors of the Learning Commons were designed with an intent of openness and flexibility to support individuals as well as groups of students. This was accomplished through the use of low-maintenance polished concrete floors, comfortable furnishings, and WiFi throughout the building. Additionally, the building has lots of natural lighting from the many windows installed, and user-controlled LED lighting allows for supplementary and energy-efficient lighting when necessary. A unique color scheme and graphics on the walls reinforce various Learning Commons ideas and tell the story of the building’s history, according to Stephany.

“The building feels closer to Google headquarters than a traditional higher-ed library,” said Howie Ferguson, assistant director and senior project manager for the UF Planning Design & Construction Division. “That’s relevant because it replicates the atmosphere and environment many students will encounter when they graduate and go to work.”

To maximize the amount of Learning Commons space within original Newell, a new appended annex was constructed to house building support spaces, such as an elevator, mechanical and electrical rooms, and stairs. The annex also includes a new food service space operated by Aramark as well as the Center for Undergraduate Research, which helps undergraduate students who are interested in research to find such opportunities.

“What makes this project special is the successful marriage of historic preservation, sustainability as well as user needs and desires,” said Stephany. “This is an unusual combination that is not so easily achieved, as these three goals are often in conflict with one another.”

Finally, a very unique part of this project’s story is the direct role UF students played in getting the project funded. Students went to the state legislator in 2012, when talk of renovating the building first began. The students created a letter-writing campaign and took buses to Tallahassee, Fla., to lobby for funding. As a result, state legislature supplied a direct appropriation of $10 million for the project. Bernie Machen, UF president was so impressed with student efforts and resulting success, that he donated another $5 million to the project, making renovation of the new energy-efficient Learning Commons possible.

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