Campus Construction

[HelmutVII]

I took these photos on Christmas Eve and nobody was on the project site so I was able to sneak around places I had not been since construction began. Some different perspectives this week.

First Rose Garden Hall as seen from the Student Union service drive.



Future alley between the two new buildings as seen from Student Union service drive. In a few weeks we will be able to see this space better defined.



Walking down the alley to view the front of the first residence hall. It will be similar to Baker and Huger with columns and arched doors and windows



Walking through the entrance and looking left (to the Student Union) reveals this hall way.



Continuing through the building to the rear entrance and looking right reveals the the remainder of the building. This is where old Huger Hall used to be.



Another view of the first residence hall. University Ave is to the left, Hebrard Blvd is to the rear, Randolph Hall is to the right and McKinley street is in the far distance to the rear.



Returning to the alley and looking right shows preparation work for concrete placement for the second residence hall. Harris Hall is to the right rear. You can just see the north Harris Hall fire escape poking out from the left side of the stair well to the right. This is where I usually take photos of the area. I'm thinking the view won't be quite so good once the second building gets above the first level.



Next week marks a year since the start of serious construction. It has been a very busy year on campus.

[RaginFan2]

It has indeed been a very busy year in campus construction. Thanks so much for posting all of these pics for us, Helmut. Believe me when I say we are all very grateful that you have done this so diligently! It is amazing how much has been done in just 1 year! I never would have believed that we'd get that level of work done in that short of a time span. What is your opinion of the quality of work being done? It looks, to my untrained eye, like it is very good quality. But someone with your background, who actually goes on-site and sees it up close, can give us a much better and informed perspective. Thanks again!

[HelmutVII]

It has indeed been a very busy year in campus construction. Thanks so much for posting all of these pics for us, Helmut. Believe me when I say we are all very grateful that you have done this so diligently! It is amazing how much has been done in just 1 year! I never would have believed that we'd get that level of work done in that short of a time span. What is your opinion of the quality of work being done? It looks, to my untrained eye, like it is very good quality. But someone with your background, who actually goes on-site and sees it up close, can give us a much better and informed perspective. Thanks again!

The quality of construction they are doing is very good. However, it is a double edged sword. They have replaced some very sound and solid buildings (masonry and cast in place concrete) with wood structures. At first glance this may appear to be a step back. However, the buildings that were demolished were very energy inefficient, loaded with asbestos and lead based paint. The older buildings (Baker, Huger and Evangeline) were not designed to be air conditioned and as a result were susceptible to mold and mildew. The new buildings will be very energy efficient. The windows are solid vinyl (very low maintenance and energy efficient) and the buildings are up to date to fire, plumbing and electric codes which should make them more comfortable and safer. My main concern is the long term durability of the building because it is a wood structure. Time will tell. My other concern is that the University has the money to build but does it have the money to maintain. As these buildings age, the maintenance costs will get greater. Only time will tell on that too.

The masonry work on the new buildings is not the same quality as the older buildings. This has nothing to do with the contractor but everything to do with the state of masonry work today. It is very difficult to find brick masons today that are equal to brick masons that worked on the older buildings. They had to import (literally) the masons that have worked and will continue to work on these buildings. There is no way any local brick mason business could handle a job of this size. This is quite obvious with Huger being so close to Hamilton Hall. If you take a very close look at the masonry work on Huger and walk across the driveway and do the same at Hamilton Hall the difference is striking. The new work is not bad, just different, and as good as we can get today.

[RaginFan2]

The quality of construction they are doing is very good. However, it is a double edged sword. They have replaced some very sound and solid buildings (masonry and cast in place concrete) with wood structures. At first glance this may appear to be a step back. However, the buildings that were demolished were very energy inefficient, loaded with asbestos and lead based paint. The older buildings (Baker, Huger and Evangeline) were not designed to be air conditioned and as a result were susceptible to mold and mildew. The new buildings will be very energy efficient. The windows are solid vinyl (very low maintenance and energy efficient) and the buildings are up to date to fire, plumbing and electric codes which should make them more comfortable and safer. My main concern is the long term durability of the building because it is a wood structure. Time will tell. My other concern is that the University has the money to build but does it have the money to maintain. As these buildings age, the maintenance costs will get greater. Only time will tell on that too.

The masonry work on the new buildings is not the same quality as the older buildings. This has nothing to do with the contractor but everything to do with the state of masonry work today. It is very difficult to find brick masons today that are equal to brick masons that worked on the older buildings. They had to import (literally) the masons that have worked and will continue to work on these buildings. There is no way any local brick mason business could handle a job of this size. This is quite obvious with Huger being so close to Hamilton Hall. If you take a very close look at the masonry work on Huger and walk across the driveway and do the same at Hamilton Hall the difference is striking. The new work is not bad, just different, and as good as we can get today.

Thanks for that info. I sort of felt that might be the case.

[Turbine]

Seems like it would but I have to ask.

Has airconditioning along with mold and mildew control methods, improved (or expected to improve) the lifespan of modern wooden structures?

[Boomer]

What was the first day of construction for the entire project and when was your first photo---Any before and after Sky shots???? Many thanks to us on the board that just love to see this stuff !!!!

[Turbine]

B-mer the first post on this thread answers some of your questions.

[HelmutVII]

What was the first day of construction for the entire project and when was your first photo---Any before and after Sky shots???? Many thanks to us on the board that just love to see this stuff !!!!

They started to move in on or about Christmas time last year. They cut some oak trees down right after school was out. (How convenient). They cut trees down around in the Rose Garden area after the spring semester of 2011. (anybody see a pattern there). I would love to do what you call sky shots but the problem is there is not a building high enough around the Rose Garden Area to get sky shots from. The Taft Street Parking garage was perfect for Baker and the Parking garage. There is nothing comparable for the Rose Garden work.

[HelmutVII]

Seems like it would but I have to ask.

Has airconditioning along with mold and mildew control methods, improved (or expected to improve) the lifespan of modern wooden structures?

The problem is not air conditioning but the presence of warm humid air on the outside and cool dry air on the inside separated by a wall. Moisture is driven to go to the dry air by nature. As long as the floor, exterior walls and top floor ceiling ( called the building envelope) are properly moisture proofed then the problem is minimized. The problem occurs when a repair of a window or other part of the envelope happens. If the envelope is not repaired along with the other intended repair then the envelope is penetrated and moisture rushes in like gang busters. If you go back through the photos you will see the building is wrapped with a white material called Tyvek. That is part of the moisture control. There are other photos of caulking windows and painting also part of moisture control. (They caulked every envelope penetration like windows, vents and light fixtures) A water proofing contractor was hired to handle this and other aspects of moisture control. Moisture control is best done during construction. Retrofit moisture control is almost impossible to do in this part of the country (It can be done by a good contractor that knows what he is doing).

Moisture control required in an air conditioned building for the Old Baker, Old Huger and Evangeline Hall was not not part of the original design because there was no air conditioning when they were built.

There will be a photos this weekend to show moisture control work.

[RaginFan2]

They started to move in on or about Christmas time last year. They cut some oak trees down right after school was out. (How convenient). They cut trees down around in the Rose Garden area after the spring semester of 2011. (anybody see a pattern there). I would love to do what you call sky shots but the problem is there is not a building high enough around the Rose Garden Area to get sky shots from. The Taft Street Parking garage was perfect for Baker and the Parking garage. There is nothing comparable for the Rose Garden work.

Maybe you could talk to Coach Hud and see if he could let you use "his" helicopter! LOL

[moorecajun]

I was facinated by the Lapeyre Stairs ... I can't wait to walk up and down a set to see the difference; maybe it is somewhat like a stair master?

[HelmutVII]

I was facinated by the Lapeyre Stairs ... I can't wait to walk up and down a set to see the difference; maybe it is somewhat like a stair master?

Lapeyer was a genius, He had patents out the wazoo. The stair is a cross between a ladder and a stair. He put powder on his socks and walked down a flight of stairs. Turned around and realized that any one time you use a stair you only use half of the tread. The light bulb went off and the rest is history.

On another note, they started placing the last concrete for foundation and slab last night (12/27) about 8:30 P.M on the second Rose Garden Building. They finished placing the last bit of concrete mid morning today (12/28). They will complete the finishing today. A long night by the workers but I'm thinking they will have a long New Years weekend. This is the last foundation concrete on the entire project and they are officially "out of the mud". I'm thinking they will be smoking after the first of the year.