Building Blocks of Higher Education Put in Place

University of Houston starts new freshman dormitory; Texas A&M plans four-building complex for agriculture, life sciences and visitors.

Corgan Converts Natatorium Into Culinary Arts Building

Going green for the Collin County Community College Preston Ridge campus also meant saving green in the $3.5-million conversion of the college’s natatorium into a culinary arts building.

A rendering shows one of the new kitchen labs in the Collin County Community College Preston Ridge Culinary Arts building, designed by Corgan Associates and built by Hunt Construction.

Dallas-based Hunt Construction - the construction manager at risk – wrapped up the fast-track building schedule recently after less than a year of building. The almost 10,000-sq-ft facility opened for hospitality and food service management classes for the Collin Community College Preston Ridge campus.

Dallas-based Corgan Associates Inc. was tasked with redesigning the existing natatorium to house the school’s culinary program, which had been using one small kitchen in Allen High School.

There were several benefits for the campus including improved facilities to expand the culinary program and the ability to convert an underused facility into something useful and cost effective, Dr. Toni Jenkins, vice president and provost of the Preston Ridge campus of Collin County Community College, told Texas Construction.

The city of Frisco built a natatorium at the college. The cost was about a half-million dollars every few years to keep the facility up to date and operating properly.

The project’s designer - David Zatopek, vice president of Corgan Associates Inc. – says leaders at the college recognized they needed to expand the culinary arts program, and the natatorium needed extensive improvements for which cost couldn’t justify the limited use of the facility.

Corgan has been a part of the project for two years. The first year was used to study the viability of the concept and adapting systems to support the kitchen. Zatopek says part of the value in redesigning the natatorium was that they could recycle an existing building rather than creating a new structure.

“We were able to do that and use the space the pool had occupied to place all of the plumbing without having to jackhammer and start from scratch,” he says.

One of the challenges in the design was to create an adequate teaching kitchen, which needs extra space so multiple students can watch demonstrations, Zatopek says.

“A culinary arts kitchen is like an artist studio because they engage in technical skills, but also in an art,” Zatopek says. “We had to incorporate technology into a design that would meet health, safety and code regulations – and make it a learning lab.”

Jenkins says the college’s hospitality and food service management program has recently added a pastry certification in addition to a number of other culinary certificates, and three different associate’s degrees in culinary arts.

“[With the new facilities] we are able to expand the curriculum to meet the needs of our community,” she says.

New Texas A&M Agriculture Headquarters Breaks Ground

As part of a planned 300,000-sq-ft, four-building complex for the Colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the Texas A&M University System broke ground in early summeron its $62.4-million Agriculture Headquarters Building and Visitors Center on its main campus in College Station.

A rendering shows new dormitory facilities for the University of Houston. The facility is being built by Hardin Construction and was designed by HADP Architecture .

Designed by Houston architecture firm Kirksey, the five-story, 166,000-sq-ft Ag Headquarters Building will consolidate the various departments within the College of Agriculture into a single location on the west campus. The building will house educational, research, and administrative facilities.

Anchoring the complex, the two-story, 13,000-sq-ft visitor center and 4H/FFA museum is designed to showcase the history and significance of agriculture. “Agriculture is Life” is the theme driving the design of the Agriculture and Life Sciences complex.

Skanska is the construction manager for the project, which will seek LEED-silver certification. Unique sustainable features include rainwater collection and storage underground for use as irrigation, constructed wetlands and on-site gardening. The first two buildings are scheduled to open in 2011.

UH Freshman Housing Facility Construction Under Way

The University of Houston awarded a $50 -million, undergraduate-housing construction project to Hardin Construction Co., an Altanta-based company with a branch in Austin.

The seven-story, 300,000-sq-ft building on the university’s central campus will accommodate incoming freshmen and represents the university’s goal to increase the campus residential population and, ultimately, to house the entire first-year class in campus residences.

The facility will include rooms for 1,172 beds, resident advisor offices, a social lounge, computer lab, multi-purpose rooms, fitness room and a convenience store.

It is the first time since 1970 that a residential facility will be dedicated specifically for freshmen, according to university officials. Construction began in June and is scheduled for a fall 2010 completion.

Dallas Cowboys Break Ground on Mega-Merchandise HQ

After opening its new $1.1-billion stadium, the Dallas Cowboys broke ground on a 400,000-sq.-ft merchandise headquarters to meet their fans’ demand for Cowboys apparel and goods.

Located at the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, the building will consolidate and expand existing Cowboys operations. It is scheduled to open in February.

Dallas-based developer Bandera Ventures previously built a 103,845-sq-ft facility for the Cowboys at DFW Airport and the current headquarters for the Merchandising Group, Pro Shop and Blue Star Graphics & Design.

The new building will serve as a warehouse, production and headquarters facility for Dallas Cowboys Merchandising, Dallas Cowboys Pro Shops, and Blue Star Graphics & Design.

El Paso Boasts Building Activity Frenzy

The Greater El Paso Chamber of Commerce recently hosted a construction symposium and discussed a wide variety of El Paso-area construction projects.

Among the high-profile projects listed by the chamber are:

The U.S. Army Corp. of Engineers at Fort Bliss has $627 million worth of construction projects for bid this year and in 2010. They include: $355 million for three infrastructure projects; $150 million for the first phase of the new Beaumont Army Medical Center; $31 million for a health and dental clinic; $23 million for a simulation center; $17 million for a rire-MP station; $15 million for alert-holding area expansion; $15 million for a child development center; $11 million for a fueling facility and storage; and $10 million for an indoor aquatic center.

Another $780 million in Fort Bliss projects ranges from building renovations, paving, roofing, asbestos, lead paint abatement, as well as levee rehabilitation along the U.S.-Mexico border. The Corps expects them to go out for bid by end of year.

The El Paso Independent School District has about $75 million in school construction and renovation projects slated for bidding this year; Clint Independent School District has $45 million in projects; and the Ysleta Independent School District has new campus and remodeling projects at 27 existing campuses for which it anticipates work to start before early next year. The University of Texas at El Paso also has plans for new buildings and renovations.

Hanson Installs Modular Bridge at New Braunfels Middle School

Hanson Pipe & Precast of Irving supplied a modular bridge for Oak Run Middle School in New Braunfels to replace an inadequate walkway. Students previously had to cross the flooded walkway when it rained.

New Braunfels-based Acme Bridge Co. Inc contracted Hanson Pipe & Precast to design and manufacture the approximately $221,000 Oak Run pedestrian bridge, which was privately and publicly funded.

Hanson manufactured the new pedestrian bridge, to replace the existing sidewalk which crosses the drainage channel. Hanson supplied four precast modular bridge interior units and eight curb units, as well as eight rail units. The modular bridge was developed for pedestrian use, but is specified in other states for roadway applications.

The product was shipped from Hanson’s Grand Prairie facility. The bridge now connects the sidewalks. Acme Bridge Co. began construction on June 1 and completed the project before the start of school. This was the first modular bridge that Hanson installed in Texas.