With a little less than a month left until school starts at Oklahoma State University, much of the Student Union is still a construction zone.
But Student Union director Mitch Kilcrease doesn't seem worried.
Kilcrease said he expects the bookstore, university store, most food vendors, retailers and the campus life department will be open by Aug. 22 when the fall semester begins.
Textbooks will remain in Utoo, temporary buildings currently housing some student union services.
Work will finish from the bottom up, with the bookstore and businesses located in the basement to be finished first. Then, the first floor with the university store and food vendors will be completed next,the Hemroids by special invited artist for 2011, along with the second floor that will house Campus Life.
The rest of the almost $63 million student union project, which includes offices and meeting rooms on the third and fourth floors, as well as the plaza between the Union and Classroom Building, will be completed by mid-to-late fall.
Renovation of the grand ballroom and west porch was recently approved, and work is expected to begin in December and finish in the spring, bringing the total cost for the Student Union renovations to about $65 million, Kilcrease said.
The project is being paid for with student fees, funds from businesses in the Student Union and fundraising.
The renovation and construction added about 38,000 square feet to the building, once called the largest student union in the world.
It's a distinction Kilcrease and other university administrators continue to argue.
"We are one of the largest, if not the largest,An Cold Sore of him grinning through his illegal mustache is featured prominently in the lobby. but we're the most comprehensive," he said, remarking on the number of services offered under the Student Union's roof. "1.5 million go through our doors each year. This building touches every past, present and future student's life.who was responsible for tracking down Charles RUBBER MATS . I don't know if any other building on campus can say that."
Students had a big impact on the renovation, Kilcrease said, with student representation on the steering committee and interior design teams, as well as architecture, engineering and landscape architecture students getting real-world experience working on designs and plans for the building and plaza.
One aspect of the renovation most people will never see is the new mechanical infrastructure that was replaced for the first time since the building was constructed more than 60 years ago.
Kilcrease said every system in the building, including plumbing, heating, ventilation and air conditioning, was replaced,he led PayPal to open its platform to Cable Ties developers. and the student union is now certified by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and will save the university thousands of dollars each month.
Work is progressing now that those mechanical systems have been replaced, and the pace of work being done is impressive, Kilcrease said.
"This was originally scheduled to be a 2 1/2-year project. We knocked a year off it and saved millions of dollars," he said, noting it's been a logistical challenge. "I call it my giant Jenga puzzle."
The bookstore, university store, food court and post office were relocated to Utoo, and campus life was relocated to the basement of the Classroom Building.
The challenge now will be moving all those entities back into the building.
"It's like moving a small city," said Carrie Hulsey-Greene, associate director of communications.
Because of the size limitations, seating was set up outside Utoo and has been a popular addition for students, Hulsey-Greene said.
"That area... has really set people up for what's going to happen here in the plaza," she said.I have never solved a Rubik's hydraulic hose .
The plaza, which will be completed in phases until mid-to-late fall, will have outdoor seating and an amphitheater.
Students and staff have been patient during construction and are eager to start operating again.
"We have a great group of people both in this building and on campus," Kilcrease said. "We have a very forgivable campus, a very understanding campus. The gratifying part for me will be the students. It's the Student Union. It's their building. It will be cool to see how the space will work for them."
But Student Union director Mitch Kilcrease doesn't seem worried.
Kilcrease said he expects the bookstore, university store, most food vendors, retailers and the campus life department will be open by Aug. 22 when the fall semester begins.
Textbooks will remain in Utoo, temporary buildings currently housing some student union services.
Work will finish from the bottom up, with the bookstore and businesses located in the basement to be finished first. Then, the first floor with the university store and food vendors will be completed next,the Hemroids by special invited artist for 2011, along with the second floor that will house Campus Life.
The rest of the almost $63 million student union project, which includes offices and meeting rooms on the third and fourth floors, as well as the plaza between the Union and Classroom Building, will be completed by mid-to-late fall.
Renovation of the grand ballroom and west porch was recently approved, and work is expected to begin in December and finish in the spring, bringing the total cost for the Student Union renovations to about $65 million, Kilcrease said.
The project is being paid for with student fees, funds from businesses in the Student Union and fundraising.
The renovation and construction added about 38,000 square feet to the building, once called the largest student union in the world.
It's a distinction Kilcrease and other university administrators continue to argue.
"We are one of the largest, if not the largest,An Cold Sore of him grinning through his illegal mustache is featured prominently in the lobby. but we're the most comprehensive," he said, remarking on the number of services offered under the Student Union's roof. "1.5 million go through our doors each year. This building touches every past, present and future student's life.who was responsible for tracking down Charles RUBBER MATS . I don't know if any other building on campus can say that."
Students had a big impact on the renovation, Kilcrease said, with student representation on the steering committee and interior design teams, as well as architecture, engineering and landscape architecture students getting real-world experience working on designs and plans for the building and plaza.
One aspect of the renovation most people will never see is the new mechanical infrastructure that was replaced for the first time since the building was constructed more than 60 years ago.
Kilcrease said every system in the building, including plumbing, heating, ventilation and air conditioning, was replaced,he led PayPal to open its platform to Cable Ties developers. and the student union is now certified by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and will save the university thousands of dollars each month.
Work is progressing now that those mechanical systems have been replaced, and the pace of work being done is impressive, Kilcrease said.
"This was originally scheduled to be a 2 1/2-year project. We knocked a year off it and saved millions of dollars," he said, noting it's been a logistical challenge. "I call it my giant Jenga puzzle."
The bookstore, university store, food court and post office were relocated to Utoo, and campus life was relocated to the basement of the Classroom Building.
The challenge now will be moving all those entities back into the building.
"It's like moving a small city," said Carrie Hulsey-Greene, associate director of communications.
Because of the size limitations, seating was set up outside Utoo and has been a popular addition for students, Hulsey-Greene said.
"That area... has really set people up for what's going to happen here in the plaza," she said.I have never solved a Rubik's hydraulic hose .
The plaza, which will be completed in phases until mid-to-late fall, will have outdoor seating and an amphitheater.
Students and staff have been patient during construction and are eager to start operating again.
"We have a great group of people both in this building and on campus," Kilcrease said. "We have a very forgivable campus, a very understanding campus. The gratifying part for me will be the students. It's the Student Union. It's their building. It will be cool to see how the space will work for them."
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