University of Miami Opens New Student and Athletic Center

August 28, 2013 1495 Views black history, correctional security, Dunbar High School, Eastern U.S., EE&K, legacy, Sean O’Donnell, Smoot Construction, Tampa General Hospital

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — The University of Miami (UM) has unveiled its news Student Activities Center along with the Schwartz Center for Athletic Excellence, just in time for the academic year.

Constructed by Moss & Associates, headquartered in For Lauderdale, Fla., and designed by Miami-headquartered Arquitectonica, the $45.5 million Student Activities Center includes a new two-story Rathskeller restaurant, which is a marker of tradition on the University of Miami campus; three retail food shops; an indoor/outdoor dining area; lounge; galleries; individual and group study spaces; and a large 1, 065-seat multipurpose room to be used for events from banquets to lectures.

“We wanted to give our students an activities center that’s second to none,” said Donna Shalala, president of the university, in a statement.

The four-story building will also include a 10,000-square-foot student organization suite, conference rooms, workspace and a media center fully equipped with computer rooms, production facilities, tiered meeting room and outdoor lakeside amphitheater.

Built to meet LEED Silver standards, the Student Activities Center was constructed in an L-shape along Lake Osceola. The center was partially funded by $20 million donation from the Fairholme Foundation and a 2006 school referendum, which levied a student fee for the construction and maintenance of the new building. Construction on the activities center began in 2011.

The $14.7 million Schwartz Center for Athletic Excellence will hone in university pride to accommodate and support the student athletes of the University of Miami. The 34,000-sqaure-foot facility was built on the north side of the Isador Hecht Athletic Center and features new football locker rooms, a lounge for university football players, the Student-Athlete Academic Center, which includes a 120-seat auditorium, and mew sports medicine and hydrotherapy training areas. A Gallery of Champions will also be located within the building to pay homage to the tradition and successes of Hurricane Athletics.

Designed by AECOM, with offices in Coral Gables, Fla., the Schwartz Center for Athletic Excellence broke ground in March 2012. The building is expected to achieve LEED Gold certification.

“These projects should give UM students and student athletes a big boost to their Hurricane experience,” said Stephen Chang of Moss & Associates, project manager for both projects, in a statement.