Facility upgrades aplenty at CSC
While much of the talk about physical changes to Chadron State College’s campus this fall is sure to center on the demolition of the Kline Campus Center, many other noteworthy projects are being initiated or have been completed this summer.
Blair Brennan, CSC coordinator of physical facilities, said two of the larger upcoming projects, involving lighting and roofing, are set for the Math and Science Building.
Contract bids will be accepted in August to replace more than 650 lighting fixtures in the building. The new lighting will use the brighter, more efficient T8 fluorescent bulbs instead of the existing T12 variety. The new bulbs, which run at 32 watts instead of 40, are expected to reduce power consumption by 29 percent and increase light output by 34 percent.
CSC received more than $45,000 in rebates from the Nebraska Public Power District’s EnergyWise incentive programs earlier this year for similar projects in the Nelson Physical Activity Center, Armstrong Physical Education Building, Old Admin and Sparks Hall.
Work is scheduled to begin Aug. 10 on a new roof for the Math and Science Building. Brennan said the rubberized roof is in need of repair, despite lasting beyond its expected longevity of 15-20 years. The roof was last replaced after the devastating 1986 hail storm. This year’s project, which was awarded to Lowe Roofing of Whitewood, S.D., for $209,500, is expected to be completed in September. The bid came in under budget and is being funded by the Task Force for Building Renewal, a division of the Nebraska Department of Administrative Services that makes allocations for maintenance, safety, disability access and energy conservation.
The construction of a new flag plaza on the Dean’s Green this fall is intended to help the college mark its centennial celebration, which officially begins homecoming, Oct. 23, and runs to commencement December 2011.
The Centennial Plaza, designed to feature the flags of the nation, state and college, is intended to provide another outdoor gathering location and will be similar to the circular plaza east of Old Admin that was constructed last year.
Students returning to campus for the start of the fall semester Aug. 23 will notice a number of improvements that were made during the summer.
Perhaps most visible to campus visitors are the improvements to the college’s landscaping and grounds. The improvements include a wide array of planting, pruning, 8,000 square feet of new turf, more than 600 tons of wood mulch and 600 linear feet of new sidewalks. The college also contracted a bulldozer to clear about three miles of trails in the hilly area south of campus to complement its 1.1-mile paved Heritage Trail.
Other improvements include refurbished rooms in the west wing of Andrews Residence Hall’s first floor and seven rooms in Kent Hall. The ongoing project to improve residence hall rooms, which has been underway for more than a decade, includes new plumbing fixtures, flooring and woodwork finish.
The college also completed to sizable projects for its heating, ventilation and air conditioning system. Mansfield Enterprises of Chadron was contracted to replace the aged wiring in the college’s wood-fired boiler system. The new 480-volt service is expected to run more efficiently and cost less than the old 208-volt system that was wired in the 1940s, Brennan said.
Snell Services of North Platte was contracted to connect Andrews Hall to the wood-fired heating and cooling system, making it the 11th of the college’s 25 buildings to receive service from the system that has received accolades for its efficiency.
Summer projects also include the refurbishing of the second of its two dressing rooms in the Memorial Hall fine arts facility, and the refinishing of the floor and fresh paint for walls in Armstrong Gym.
Category: Campus News