CREJ - Building Dialogue - December 2016
Over the past five years, there have been several major bonds passed to improve K-12 facilities in Colorado through remodeling and additions due to the increased population in the state. Local universities are also seeing an increase in student enrollment and are seeking a more efficient use of space to accommodate their growing student body. Our company has been a part of numerous K-12 and higher education remodels and additions throughout the past 44 years. Though K-12 and higher education facilities have very different end goals, they both share similar challenges when remodeling or adding to an existing education facility. Older Buildings with Unknown Histories One of the key components that come into play on any renovation project are unforeseen circumstances. Many of these education facilities are decades old with a hidden past and no recorded history. Design teams can tirelessly research an older building for years leading up to construction, and there will still be unforeseen conditions that arise. Quite often, old buildings do not have an accurate set of as-built drawings that reflect the details of the existing building’s actual construction assembly. When possible, early involvement and investigation is crucial to the success of renovations/additions. Colorado School of Mines Ben. H. Parker Student Renovation – Phases 1 and 2: The student center was built in the early 1960s and originally was called the College Union. The civil rights movement, Vietnam War and 13 presidential elections were just a few of the events the building lived through in its 50-year history. The number of renovations and updates that took place in the facility were well over 100, and approximately 80 percent of these updates were undocumented. Sound familiar? When Phase 1 operations began, the Saunders project team immediately ran into unforeseen issues that were discovered during demolition and the initial stages of construction. As layers of the building were demolished, the facility’s lost history of unknown renovations began to surface. The original as-builts were not even close to representing what the project team encountered. Saunders worked with H+L Architecture to develop a plan to update the as-builts to represent the true state of the building. This collaboration with the architect was vital to getting this project completed on time and on budget. Student Safety is Paramount All education remodels and additions should have very specific safety plans due to the close proximity of children and young adults to the site. Schedule is always important to our clients, but the safety of the community is even greater. Sometimes meeting high safety standards requires that the team separate construction operations from the existing facility as much as possible, or complete operations during nonschool hours. Open communication with staff and students on construction operations is important to keeping curious children and daring college students off a construction site. Keeping students apprised of the project can lead to less curiosity and a greater respect for the process. Whether it’s a weekly update bulletin on construction operations, or easily read signage, this is all apart of assuring that you keep your site safe in an occupied space. Additionally, it is important to be flexible with the school district or university on its educational needs. For instance, loud constriction operations cannot commence during standardized testing or final exams. Construction schedules should accommodate the concerns for maintaining the learning environment. Valor Christian Center for Culture and Influence: Saunders completed the 82,000-square-foot building in October 2015. The project took place while school was in session and throughout summer break. Our superintendent escorted students and staff through the site on multiple tours to educate them on what was taking place and what to expect throughout construction. Acting students interviewed our project team members about construction operations, while highlighting unique features to their highly anticipated arts facility. Building Community Relations Education addition and remodels tend to be taxpayer and/or student-funded projects. The community deserves to be well informed on what is taking place in the backyard of their neighborhoods. Remodels are often in the middle of existing communities, which limits access and lay-down area that may cause disruption to the community. Holding a community preconstruction meeting is a great first step to gaining trust and respect of parents, students, staff and neighbors. Complaints are not uncommon in our world of construction. After all, construction is not the most attractive thing to witness. However, the preconstruction community meeting may help save a few headaches for your team in the future by educating the community and making them feel safe and comfortable with operations taking place. The experience can be pleasurable for all, and open communication with the community is key to assuring this happens on education remodels and additions. \\ s.westbrooks@saundersci.com