By Greg Robinson, Multimedia Editor
Driving onto the campus of Saint Leo these days, it is hard to miss the growing framework of the new business center. The construction of that building, as well as the university’s new softball field, has been progressing at a rapid pace, and the buildings are starting to shape up.
The new business center is proceeding according to schedule; in fact, it is slightly ahead. The construction is one day ahead of the tentative timeline needed to open it on time. The walls for the first floor are nearly complete, and a crew is working on some interior work for the first floor while the other floors are being constructed. AC is expected to be installed by the end of January, and much of the duct work is to be started as well as the piping for the sprinkler system.
Also, the recycling efforts of the business center’s construction site are above and beyond what was projected. The university was attempting to have 90 percent of their materials recycled. The construction has gone above and exceeded this requirement and currently recycle 98 percent of all construction materials. This qualifies the construction site as a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environ-mental Design) gold project.
“Our goal was to be LEED silver, and right now we’re about 2points above, at the bottom of LEED gold certification.” said Mr. Frank Mezzanini, Vice President of Business Affairs and CFO at Saint Leo University.
The recycled materials are concrete and metal scraps. Right now, all leftover concrete in the construction is being recycled, as are most of the metal scraps.
The new softball field is progressing on time as well. However, an issue arose with the placement of some bleachers behind the 3rd base dugout. Any spectator sitting in that area would have their view obstructed by a concrete wall.
This is not a major problem or hindrance, however, and is unlikely to delay the opening of the new softball stadium. One proposed solution is to have seats placed on top of the dugouts to have an unobstructed view. This is only one of many possibilities. The staff and contractors are weighing several options and will choose the one best for the university.
Mr. Mezzanini has provided a number of websites for the Saint Leo community to track the progress and stay updated with the new buildings. He operates a construction blog at http://sluconstruction.posterous.com/.
Also, anyone can view video of the construction by accessing two cameras. The links for these cameras are http://constructioncam1.saintleo.edu and http://constructioncam2.saintleo.edu.
The Lions’ Pride will continue to update the students, staff, and faculty of Saint Leo University on the new buildings taking shape on our campus.
Corrections published in December 03:
In the article titled “New Business center being built “green”, the Donald R. Tapia School of Business was misrepresented as a business center instead of a building.
