Opened in 1982, the UW Arena-Auditorium will be renovated following the 2013-2014
basketball season.
A Wyoming company has been chosen to manage the first phase of a major renovation of the University of Wyoming Arena-Auditorium.
The UW Board of Trustees today (Friday) authorized negotiation of a contract with Haselden Construction of Casper to serve as construction manager for the $12 million project. The firm was chosen from a list of four finalists, all Wyoming companies.
The first phase of the A-A project will involve expansion and replacement of the basketball court floor to provide two practice courts and reorientation of the competition court; reconfiguration and replacement of the seating in the lower bowl to include up to 500 club seats, as well as dedicated media, band and student sections; renovation of most of the current locker room level; installation of upgraded lights and new video boards, LED ribbon boards and sound system; and life-safety and Americans with Disabilities Act improvements.
The project will be funded by $7 million in private donations and $5 million in state matching funds. Construction is scheduled to begin in March 2014, and be completed in time for the start of the basketball season in October 2014.
The second phase of improvements to the A-A, which opened in 1982, will include building additions and renovations at the concourse level. The estimated cost for that phase is $18 million. No construction timeline has been established.
State matching dollars also are instrumental in another project for which the Board of Trustees took action today. Trustees authorized a contract with Shepard Construction Inc. of Rawlins on a $2.6 million renovation of the lower level of UW’s Education Annex Building to create the Wyoming Literacy Research Center and Clinic. Work is expected to begin immediately, with completion scheduled for November.
The estimated total cost of the Literacy Research Center and Clinic project is $3.35 million, funded by private donations and matched by state appropriations. It also includes extensive technology and equipment necessary to the center’s mission, which is to serve as the epicenter of literacy expertise in Wyoming.
The center will offer professional development for teachers; literacy education for pre-service teachers and graduate students; research on literacy education; and serve as a statewide clinical resource.
Also today, the Board of Trustees voted to contract with D&D Roofing of Commerce City, Colo., and Big Horn Roofing of Laramie to replace the roof of the UW American Heritage Center and Centennial Complex. Big Horn Roofing will handle the low-slope portion of the estimated $3.5 million project, with D& D Roofing taking care of the steep-slope portion. No Wyoming resident contractors submitted bids on the steep-slope portion.
The project, funded with major maintenance dollars, is scheduled for completion in November.
Finally, the Board of Trustees authorized a contract with Arcon Inc. of Laramie to expand the general storage building on the southeast corner of the 15th Street and Gibbon Street intersection. The $2.2 million project, funded by UW’s Section 2 budget, will create space for UW Physical Plant units displaced by the razing of structures to accommodate the Michael B. Enzi STEM Facility and the Marian H. Rochelle Gateway Center.
