graphic by Lauren Rabaino
Those walking through the Cal Poly campus might not realize there is more to be experienced than what meets the eye. Just one trip around the bustling campus will leave you with a glimpse of the changes to come.
Three major projects designed to improve campus life started construction this year alone. According to Facilities Information Coordinator Pamela Eidelman, each project is currently on schedule with its deadline.
If you start your scenic route at Mountain Lane, it is noticeably open again to traffic, with short-term metered parking expected back soon.
Completed on schedule, the new Housing Administration Building replaced what used to be an inadequate structure and a temporary trailer, and consolidated the administrative, business, facilities, and residential life components of the Campus Housing Program.
With a budget of $3,748,985, this new and improved building is now open for business.
If you continue your way around the campus you will come to the construction site of the Center for Construction Management, expected to be completed by March 2008.
As of the June 2007 report, the new construction is 40.8 percent complete. “This new building will provide classrooms and laboratories for the Construction Management and Architecture Department,” Eidelman said.
Associated with the Center for Construction Management is the renovation of Building 21, Engineering West. Renovation and detours for foot traffic will continue until December 2007, so make sure to plan your route to fall classes ahead of time.
When traveling down California Street, you will catch sight of the Alex G. Spanos Stadium. It may look finished from the outside, but this Mustang Stadium Renovation and Expansion and Parking Structure project has a long way to go.
Scheduled for completion in 2010, the first phase of this project will provide approximately 4,000 additional seats, as well as restrooms and a new press box.
Once construction is complete, the brand new Alex G. Spanos Stadium is expected to cost $19,405,000.
At the far northeast side of campus is the largest project currently underway, the Poly Canyon Village.
“The contractor is ahead of schedule on this student housing project which will provide apartments for 2,670 students and 1,926 parking spaces,” Eidelman said.
According to the Poly Canyon Web site, phase one of the Poly Canyon Village is scheduled to open in September 2008. All of the roofing and windows have been installed and work has begun on the interior walls.
While passing Poly Canyon Village, you might find construction teams working on the exterior stucco and interior utilities and the concrete cleanup process in the soon-to-be parking lots.
According to the Web site’s itinerary the project is scheduled to be worked on in two separate phases. Phase one is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2008 with parking structure No. 1 and buildings A, B, H and I completed.
Phase two will be ready in summer 2009 with parking structure No. 2 and buildings C, D, E, F and G completed.
The project takes up 27 acres of land and will consist of 619 apartment units, parking spaces, study areas, laundry units, retail space and a swimming pool.
Once finished, the entire project will have 148,000 square feet of sidewalk, more than 30,000 cubic yards of concrete, more than 1,200 low-flow toilets, 5,900 linear feet of countertop, almost 2,000 sinks, 5,600 doors, 3,500 windows, and more than 450 new trees planted.
With a total project budget of $299,885,117, the finished product will provide 2,700 additional on-campus bedspaces, almost doubling current residence hall spaces, giving Cal Poly the largest housing program in the CSU system.
According to the Student Housing Proposal, Cal Poly and San Diego State University currently offer the largest amount of on-campus housing in the CSU system.