State of the Campus
The UT You Knew is Getting Even Better
Some changes are being made at UT—to put it mildly. Construction and renovation valued at $744 million have spawned a physical renaissance on campus. A systematic plan for modernizing existing buildings and facilities necessary to accommodate the expanding student body is a continuing requirement of the Master Plan process.
Among the high visibility projects funded and/or in progress are Glocker Business Building, improvements to Neyland Stadium, and the upcoming renovation of Ayres Hall. Ayres, UT’s “signature” building atop The Hill, was built in 1921.
New construction will be environmentally friendly. All major new buildings will be “green.” Construction projects of $5 million or more must conform to LEED (U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards. The standards ensure that a building is significantly more energy- and water- efficient than a normal building, and requires less-harmful construction techniques as well.
We all loved the campus the way it was when we were in school, but this modernization can’t help but pump up Volunteer pride and help attract great new students.
Here’s a glimpse at all that’s going on.
Glocker Business Administration Building is on track to open this fall. The façade is reminiscent of the old Glocker, but inside the building will be all new—equipped for high-definition global teleconferencing and digital signage, wireless Internet access, and an advanced room access security and information system. The building will include 32 classrooms, team rooms and presentation rooms, a technology center, an investment center, an atrium, and a glass elevator.
Ayres Hall plays a leading role in UT history and tradition, and its upcoming renovation will enhance that prominence. Central heat and air will be added, and classrooms will be fitted with “smart” technology. The math department will continue to be housed there, and office space will be prepared for the dean of Arts and Sciences. The state has appropriated $23 million for the Ayres upgrades.
Estabrook Hall is scheduled for renovation for the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. The $16-million dollar renovation includes labs, smart classrooms and faculty offices.
Expansion of the Music Building is also on the short list. More performance spaces, rehearsal rooms, and classrooms; a music library/media center; a recording studio; and modern technology and better acoustics will be added. Natalie and Jim Haslam of Knoxville gave $10 million for the renovations, in addition to $30 million appropriated by the state. Architects are currently working with the School of Music to prepare the building design. The building was built in 1965 when there were about 150 music majors. Today there are about 450.
Work is underway on the Min Kao Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Building. Kao, founder, CEO, and chairman of Garmin Ltd., gave $12.5 million for the building, and the state appropriated $25 million. Location is at the corner of Cumberland Avenue and Estabrook Drive.
The 51,500-square-foot Howard Baker Center for Public Policy is being built through private funding and will be completed this spring. The $17-million facility is located on Cumberland Avenue. The center’s mission is to create a better understanding of government and public policy issues and promote public service.
Things are popping with the residence halls. A $20.5-million conversion of the Laurel Apartments from graduate housing to apartment-style undergraduate housing is underway. The building is expected to reopen this fall. UT also is in the process of buying Knoxville Place, a high-rise, apartment-style residence near the law college, which will help accommodate a growing student body. With the new and renovated housing available, the university will close Melrose and Strong halls for residential occupancy at the end of this academic year. UT will add a new 700-bed residence hall near the Black Cultural Center, with construction on that $41 million project slated to begin in the 2008–09 academic year. Hess Hall is being modernized, and other renovations include Clement, Humes, North and South Carrick, Greve, Massey, and Reese.
The old Student Health Clinic is slated to give way to a comprehensive Student Health Services Building on a site adjacent to the present building on Andy Holt Avenue. The new building will bring together clinical health services, UT Counseling Services, a pharmacy, and the SEE (Safety, Environment & Education) Center.
The Cherokee Campus, a totally new area, is being readied for construction. The acreage on Alcoa Highway near UT Medical Center is one of the very few tracts available to expand the largely land-locked campus. The UT-Oak Ridge Joint Institute for Advanced Materials likely will be one of the first buildings in the new development, and new research buildings probably will follow.
A new University Center is on the drawing board. The multimillion dollar project would give UT facilities comparable to those at other major universities. The current University Center was built in 1954–55 at a cost of $1.6 million and expanded in 1967 with a 107,000-square-foot addition.
The College of Veterinary Medicine is finishing up a $9-million expansion, partially funded by a gift from a donor. The Clyde M. York Veterinary Medicine Building went into service in 1978. This is the first expansion.
A lot is happening with new and renovated athletic facilities, and all the changes are self-funded or funded by donations. None are financed with state dollars. Most notable are the continuing renovation of Neyland Stadium and Pratt Pavilion, the new basketball practice facility adjoining newly-renovated Thompson-Boling arena.
Plans for Sorority Village are moving along. The new sorority houses will be near the intersection of Kingston Pike and Neyland Drive. The university owns the land, but each chapter will fund its own house. Fraternities in Fraternity Park are remodeling their houses, built in the late 1960s.
And there’s more. Renovation of the instructional wing of the Hesler Building will be completed this fall. A 1,200-space parking garage is planned at Volunteer Boulevard and Pat Head Summitt Drive. The Joe Johnson-John Ward pedestrian walkway will be extended, and campus entrances are getting a facelift.
Do you have comments about plans for the future of the campus? E-mail torch@tennessee.edu.