Construction and renovations on several campus buildings will continue next semester with anticipated completion dates in the summer and fall of 2012, according to Jason Soileau, the assistant director of Campus Planning with Facility Services.
The Business Education Complex will be completed on Dec. 26, Soileau said. The BEC will feature 156,000 square feet of new classrooms, offices and an auditorium.
Construction is on track, and Facility Services will be able to occupy the building May 14 after final inspections have been completed. Soileau said summer school classes will most likely be held in the building.
The construction of the Choppin Hall Annex lab facilities is scheduled to be finished in March 2012, Soileau said. The annex will include new lab technologies and roughly 90,000 square feet of lab space.
Soileau said there have been no delays on the project and students will most likely be able to use the new facilities next fall.
Renovations to the French House’s roof, windows and doors will be completed by the end of the year, according to Soileau. The renovations will help weather-proof the 76-year-old building.
Soileau said another major project to renovate the interior of the building is being submitted for approval for the Capital Outlay project.
However, the Raphael Semmes Parking Garage and Bookstore has faced delays in construction. The anticipated completion date was originally March 2012, but Soileau said he predicts it will be done around May.
He said the garage may be used sparingly in the summer, but the University can “count on the fall” for final completion.
The building will feature a 60,000-square foot bookstore and a parking garage with 750 commuter parking spots.
Soileau said a few minor projects will also begin construction and planning in the spring.
New bus shelters at the intersection of Tower and South Stadium drives and in front of Lockett Hall will be built with an anticipated completion date of March 2012.
New entrance gateways were recently approved and will be built near the University Lakes as a part of Facility Service’s “wayfinding” initiative, which is aimed to improve signs and navigation around campus.
 
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Contact Laura Furr at [email protected]