“The pedestrian bridge along with inviting walkways, lighting and landscaping, will offer a safer transportation route for our students and visitors between the Modesto A. Maidique Campus and the City of Sweetwater,” said Kenneth Jessell, FIU senior vice president for finance and administration and chief financial officer, in a statement.

The $9.3 million pedestrian bridge and other streetscape elements will link the city of Sweetwater with the northern entrance of FIU. Miami-based building and civil engineering firm MCM, in partnership with Tallahassee, Fla.-headquartered FIGG Bridge Engineers, will design and build the new pedestrian facilities.
MCM also completed an expansion of the FIU football stadium in August 2012.

As the project also involves city infrastructure, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), the Federal Highway Administration, the City of Sweetwater and Miami-Dade Transit were also included in approving the project team. Groundbreaking will take place this spring and the project is likely to wrap up by summer 2018.

“FDOT is pleased to be a funding partner in this project," said Gus Pego, secretary of FDOT District Six, in a statement. “We are committed to working together with FIU to improve safety and connectivity for all pedestrians and students.”


The proposed 320-foot-long bridge design features a 108-foot support tower intended to make the structure a landmark and a gateway for western Miami-Dade County. The bridge will also feature a lighting system designed by Randy Burkett Lighting Design of St. Louis that will illuminate it at night. A 30-foot-wide concrete canopy will be added, and the bridge’s generous width will allow for the comfortable passage of bikes and pedestrians as well as a space for special events and student seating. A 175-foot section of the bridge will be prefabricated adjacent to the site and moved into position in a single night so as to minimize traffic disruption.

“The MCM-FIGG team is honored and blessed to have been selected to build this iconic bridge,” said Jorge Munilla, president of MCM, in a statement. “It’s even more satisfying to serve the students and faculty of FIU again.”

Additionally, the project will include the construction of a new $37 million FIU parking garage. Smart phone users will be able to use a new smart parking software system, which will alert them to the location of available spaces in the garage and make parking more efficient, The application will also contain real-time information about transportation, including the new advanced bus system with which Miami-Dade Transit is planning to connect west Miami-Dade County with the Miami Intermodal Center at the airport, according to a statement by MCM.

An $11.4 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery Program grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation will fund the project. The funds will cover the construction of the bridge as well as improvements to the entrances of MMC and to the 109th Avenue area in Sweetwater across from MMC.

Click here to see a video of MCM-FIGG’s proposal.
 

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In the coming year, Bryant will expand its 435-acre Smithfield campus by an estimated 250,000 square feet. The university will receive a new entrance complete with integrated landscaping and a clear, welcoming point of arrival for all campus visitors, as well as a new 50,000-square-foot Academic Innovation Center. The center will foster innovative learning in a creative environment, serving students in the College of Business and the College of Arts and Sciences, according to a statement.

Work will also take place on the university’s Bulldog Strength and Conditioning Center, wrapping up later this summer. A 78,000-square-foot indoor practice facility complete with a state-of-the-art indoor turf practice field will be added, and further upgrades to the existing Elizabeth and Malcolm Chace Wellness and Athletic Center will take place — including the addition of a sports medicine and training space.

“With the transformative Bryant Builds plan, we are creating the world-class learning environment that aligns with Bryant’s bold future,” said university President Ronald Machtley in a statement. “We are enhancing our academic and athletic facilities to become best in class, with innovation as a central theme in architecture and pedagogy.”

The last decade has been a period of considerable growth for the approximately 3,200-student university. The last several years have seen the addition of both the College of Business and the College of Arts and Sciences, as well as the school’s transition from a college to a university. Bryant also joined NCAA Division I athletics in 2013, and a year later established the School of Health Science.

In addition to growing its local infrastructure, the school also announced an overseas expansion earlier this year, thanks to a partnership with the Beijing Institute of Technology in Zhuhai, China. In March, the universities jointly broke ground in Zhuhai on a new cooperative program facility that will span 107,000 square feet and will be funding equally by both institutions. The 800-acre Chinese campus already educates an estimated 25,000 students, and Bryant hopes the partnership will encourage more of them to study at the Rhode Island campus.

President Machtley, who has served in the role for two decades, has been a great proponent of the expansion. Throughout his tenure the university has added approximately 267,000 square feet in facilities and invested upwards of $250 million in both facilities and technology, according to a statement.

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Designed by architect of record Legat Architects and design architect Brubaker Design, both of Chicago, the new Science & Engineering Building will highlight the college’s science and engineering programs and serve as an attractive new gathering spot for the campus community. In addition to creating nearly 42,000 square feet of new teaching and learning space, the project will also include a roughly 25,000-square-foot renovation of the college’s existing C Wing.

The project will provide all new laboratory spaces for biology, microbiology, anatomy, physiology and chemistry students. The soon-to-be constructed areas will include four laser and photonics laboratories — expanding the college’s growing engineering department — and five chemistry laboratories, including one specifically devoted to organic chemistry. Meanwhile, the renovated space will offer two new anatomy and physiology labs, two cadaver labs, two microbiology labs, four upgraded biology labs and two general-purpose classrooms.

The new building in particular has been designed to LEED platinum standards, and will include a variety of green features such as a rooftop photovoltaic array, a geothermal heating and cooling system, a rainwater harvesting system, LED lighting and a living wall. The building’s sustainability features are anticipated to result in a more than 50 percent reduction in energy consumption over a comparable conventionally designed building.

“We are very proud of the sustainability features,” said CLC Board Chair Amanda Howland in a statement. “They demonstrate that sustainability is good not just for the planet but also for taxpayers’ pocketbooks.”

Construction of the Science & Engineering Building addition is expected to wrap up in summer 2016, after which crews will begin on the renovation phases. The Illinois Capital Development Board (CDB) and the college funded the three-story building and upgrades jointly. Affiliated Engineering, Inc. (AEI) also assisted in the development of efficient mechanical and electrical systems that will support the college’s commitment to energy conservation and sustainable principles, according to a statement by the college.

In addition to this new facility, CLC’s Master Plan also includes a variety of other upgrades and improvements, including the addition of a $4.8 million geothermal system, which will provide heating and cooling to the entire campus. A nearly $25 million renovation to the campus’ Main Lobby, located between two existing wings, will include extensive remodeling and the addition of a new café. Further renovations to the A and B wings will modernize existing HVAC and sprinkler systems, create a centralized student services center and update classrooms.

Improvements are also taking place at CLC’s Waukegan campus. That campus will receive a new 53,000-square-foot building, and more than 19,700 square feet of existing space will undergo renovations to expand educational offerings and enhance services and programs. Meanwhile, the CLC Southlake Campus in Vernon Hills will benefit from a $1.67 million chemistry lab expansion.

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The largest of these new projects will be six new eight-floor dormitories, one of which was completed before the start of the 2014 school year. Academia-wise, Liberty plans to build new state-of-the-art science and music buildings, as well as a new Center for Health and Medical Sciences. On Oct. 9, the university also approved the construction of a brand-new 4,500-seat sports arena to house its basketball, wrestling and hockey programs, as well as a bridge to the facility that will span the adjacent US Highway 460. Further expanding its recreational and sports offerings, Liberty will also build a natatorium with an Olympic-grade swimming pool, as well as a state-of-the-art NCAA-approved weight-lifting facility. Additionally, the school intends to construct a greenway in the middle of campus and an indoor practice facility for the school’s football team, and will expand the existing hockey arena.

The university also recently petitioned city council to allow construction of the school’s Campus Landmark Tower, which if built would become the city of Lynchburg’s largest building at 252 feet.

As Liberty University is a private school, the city of Lynchburg has little say in the schools construction plans. However, Kimball Payne, Lynchburg’s city manager, along with many other city officials, couldn’t be happier with Liberty’s plans.

“The transformation that is occurring there is phenomenal. We’ve tried to work with them and accommodate Liberty’s growth,” Payne told the Roanoke Times in October.

Payne added that the main concern the city has with Liberty’s exponential growth and the construction of these new facilities is the subsequent traffic inflow, as well as the university’s proper adherence to building codes and environmental regulations.

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Rick Anderson, Washburn University’s treasurer and vice president for administration, said in a release that work with the architecture firms will begin in the coming days, and that construction will be up for bid this December. The building is expected to cost approximately $30 million, and construction will likely begin by March 2015. Students are expected to move into the new facility in time for the fall 2016 semester.

According to Denise Ottinger, vice president for student life, the exact configuration of the new student housing facility has not yet been determined, and will depend on financial feasibility. However, Washburn administrators have said that the suite-style student rooms will share common living space as they do in two of the university’s existing residence halls.

The new dining facility will specifically seek to address the lunchtime bottleneck experienced at the existing Memorial Union, and meet the need for additional programming space and expanded late night dining options. Ottinger added in a release that the university hopes the new facility will become a post-game destination for the campus community.

Construction of the new housing and dining structure will also help address the university’s residence hall wait list, which it has maintained for the past four years.
According to Anderson, lack of housing is one reason the school loses prospective students to other colleges and universities.

"We don’t know how many students we lose because we don’t have housing," Anderson said in a statement. "But that does happen."

The momentum created by this and other building projects included in the university’s 10-year campus master plan are likely to have a positive impact on both enrollment and the Washburn community. Currently Washburn is conducting extensive renovations to the Welcome Center at Morgan Hall, which will soon serve as the university’s “front door.” The multimillion renovation will enable students conduct a number of admission, registration, advising and financial aid activities under one roof, and is expected to be completed in time for the school’s 2015 sesquicentennial celebration.

Meanwhile, Washburn has also partnered with the Kansas Bureau of Investigation to construct a state-of-the-art forensic laboratory on campus. Upon completion the approximately $55 million, 100,000-square-foot facility will house the state’s crime lab, and allow the university to expand its biological, computer/digital and anthropological forensics course offerings.

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As the building development process continues, members of the Barnard community will meet periodically in subcommittees to focus on the fundamental elements of this project as it moves to the design phase and beyond.

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The monumental Scandlon Center introduced 41,000 square feet of new multi-purpose recreation and education space to the King’s College campus, and features brick work, metal panels, and concrete masonry. Rather than disguise these simple, economical architectural components, designers chose to highlight them.

“The Scandlon Health and Wellness Center’s aesthetic quality is ultimately about its utilitarian nature,” Spillman Farmer Design Principal Joseph N. Biondo, AIA, said in a statement. “We made a deliberate effort to impart a simple, clear, and balanced beauty that will become a timeless enhancement to the King’s College campus.”

The college decided to construct a new indoor sports facility to provide more athletic and recreational space to students, and to house its sports sciences program. The project’s largest space is the 20,000-square-foot gymnasium, located on the building’s upper level. Other spaces include a 2,600-square-foot athletic training education suite, a 860-square-foot health sciences classroom, a 1,320-square-foot physical therapy suite and a 1,600-square-foot administrative suite. An outdoor teaching area adds green space to the urban location, and also provides for outdoor recreation.

The use of natural building materials continued inside, where day lighting and multiple wood storage components help illuminate and soften the space. Exposed masonry walls and red accent gypsum board walls punctuate the gymnasium and other areas of the new building, while durable and easy-to-maintain polished concrete floors fill the majority of public spaces. The building’s structural system also includes a poured-in-place spread footing foundation, steel frame, and long-span steel joists.

"The design of the center accomplished the dual goals of providing expanded recreational opportunities for our students, as well as office space for the College’s athletic training faculty," the Rev. John Ryan, president of King’s College, said in a statement. "The building is a tremendous addition to our campus."

The new building is also linked to the college’s existing 71,500-square-foot main gymnasium through a glassed walkway, and occupies a compact, sloping urban site. Due to its unique location and relationship to existing buildings, the Scandlon Center presented several key challenges for the design team. To account for these restraints, program spaces, including athletics, student recreation, and health sciences, are economically stacked and strategically zoned to take advantage of the site’s natural topography.

The project also included several upgrades to the original gymnasium, adjacent to the new structure. These included revisions and upgrades to the HVAC ductwork, renovations to the locker rooms and bathrooms, and the installation of new bleachers. The HVAC system in the new gymnasium also services a section of the original gymnasium building.

The project team also included construction manager Sordoni Construction Services; Radnor Property Group; structural engineer Barry Isett & Associates; civil engineer Derck & Edson Associates; mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineer Martin Rogers & Associates; and sports flooring suppliers and installers Beynon Sports Surfaces and M. Abraham Flooring.

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