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Posted by on Friday, February 19, 2010 3:59 pm

UNCG to Break Ground on New ‘Green’ Residence Hall in May

The university will break ground in May on a 400-bed residence hall that is slated to open in August 2011.

The structure will be the first “green” residence hall on campus, and will stand at the southwest corner of Spring Garden Street and Kenilworth Avenue. The $30 million building will meet LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards set by the U.S. Green Building Council. The project will seek LEED certification at the silver level. The sustainable design is expected to save an estimated 30 percent on energy consumption.

Throughout its history, UNCG has been a residential campus, encouraging students to immerse themselves fully in the college experience through on-campus living, said UNCG Housing & Residence Life Director Mary Hummel.

“The residential living experience plays an integral role in supporting UNCG’s vision to ‘redefine the public university for the 21st century’ by developing innovative learning opportunities in support of academic excellence.

“This experience stimulates and supports leadership development though community engagement, and establishes multiple outlets for meaningful relationships and connections within the university. It both mobilizes and reinforces the community of common purpose that is UNCG.”

The 170,000-square-foot building will serve as a living learning community. Classroom and administrative spaces are being created to support an upperclass living-learning program. In addition, retail space will be established on the street level.

The construction start carries an economic benefit. State economists estimate that every $1 million spent on a construction project results in 36 new jobs, and each dollar spent on a project generates a return of $2.28 is pumped into North Carolina’s economy.

The project is undertaken by the UNCG-affiliated Capital Facilities Foundation, which has selected Pearce Brinkley Cease and Lee in association with Ayers/Saint/Gross to design the new residence hall. Barton Malow/Samet/SRS has been selected to serve as the construction manager. EDC is coordinating the project for the foundation.

UNCG approved a Strategic Housing Plan in September that incorporates the UNCG Strategic Plan 2009-2014 and the UNCG Master Plan before moving ahead with construction of the new hall and with the renovation of the Quad, a quadrangle that holds seven halls that were building between 1919 and 1923. UNCG has a goal of trying to provide on-campus housing for at least 25 percent of the student population, which is expected to grow more than 1000 students by 2012 and to between 22,000 and 24,000 by 2025.

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