April 9th, 2009

From Jay Kahn, Maryann Lindberg and Frank Mazzola: The Keene State College Alumni Center is moving from the drawing board to construction. Following a bidding process, the College awarded a construction contract to Eckman Construction Co. of Bedford, N.H. The construction costs are expected to be under $5 million, well within the budget approved by the USNH Trustees, and substantial completion is anticipated by next spring.

The new 21,000 square foot building (check out the architectural renderings) on Main Street across from Hale Building will house all departments in the Advancement Division: Development, Online Communications, College and Media Relations, and Alumni and Parent Relations. The Alumni Center function room will be used for award ceremonies, career fairs, continuing education classes, and other college functions.

In September of 2008, two houses on Main Street were razed as the College prepared the site for the new Alumni Center. Hazardous material abatement is nearly complete at the remaining wood frame building at 232 Main St., which was once used by the Newman Center. The front historical section of this house will be incorporated into the new Alumni Center. When the asbestos removal is complete (as soon as April 24), the site will be readied for the installation of steel piles that will support the new building. Construction will progress quickly through the summer and fall, and the building is scheduled to be complete by March 2010. Landscape and paving work occur in the spring of 2010, and the center is expected to be ready for the 2010 alumni reunion.

Thank you to the Advancement and Physical Plant staffs, USNH Capital Projects staff, and the architectural team led by Weller and Michal Architects of Keene for helping us get to this point.

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Two houses on Main Street came down last week as the College prepared the site for a new alumni center. Construction is expected to begin next spring on two interconnected buildings surrounding a courtyard. The center is expected to be ready for the 2010 alumni reunion. The new building will be used for award ceremonies, career fairs, continuing education classes, and other College functions. An architect’s rendering of the future building is displayed on the corner site.

Photo: Kay MacLean

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This summer the College began the abatement of lead paint found on parts of the trim on the Elliot Center overlooking the Child Development Center (CDC) playground. The project started on June 18, and the final pieces of scaffolding were removed on August 15.

“They were able to remove all of the paint from the rake and eaves and sunporch on the portions of the Elliot Center that border the playground, and replaced 63 windows,” said Sylvie Rice, manager of Environmental Health and Safety.

The white picket fence separating the playground from the sides of the Elliot Center has been reinstalled, and on August 9 Covino Environmental Associates, Inc., collected soil samples from the playground and along the drip line to document the concentrations of lead. All of the soil samples outside of the fenced area are well below the maximum allowable concentration. The CDC opens on August 25.

“The project went well and was completed on schedule, thanks to Chris Cormier and American Construction Company, who managed the project,” said Rice. “The College will be meeting this fall with the state to determine what, if any, actions will need to be taken to address the one location between the picket fence and the building where elevated soil levels remain.”

Photo: Sylvie Rice

Scaffolding covered the Elliot Center for much of the summer while 63 windows were replaced and all lead paint was removed from the wooden trim.

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