Summer Projects Enhance the Student Experience

Guilford’s campus has been humming this summer with facilities renovation projects that have touched almost every corner of campus life, from sports to dining, to dorm life and parking.

“All in all, it works out to almost $2.5 million in campus improvements over the summer, all of which directly impact the student experience,” says Jon Varnell, associate vice president of operations and facilities.

Here is a rundown of the major work leading up to the start of the new school year:

Founders Dining Area

Students coming into the dining area of Founders Hall found a whole new experience awaiting them. With the addition of two 45-foot-long skylights, the hall is now more open and bright. New seating arrangements, from bar-height counters to cozy café tables, fill both levels. The $850,000 project was paid for in large part through the contracted agreement with the campus’ food service provider, Meriwether Godsey.

Work on the dining hall renovation was compressed into a tight schedule, Varnell says, with work starting immediately after commencement in May and meal service resuming June 25 in time for the arrival of Eastern Music Festival participants.

Other improvements diners will find: The dish return is no longer the focal point of the dining hall. “For 35 years, the dish return was by the front door, creating all kinds of traffic issues,” Varnell says. A repositioned vegan station has a more convenient home in the hall.

Behind the scenes, but doing the dirty work, will be a new high-powered dishwasher and food pulper that will save water and reduce waste significantly. Varnell says the college will recoup its investment in these items within two years because of their much-improved efficiency.

Elsewhere in Founders, the information desk was moved closer to the main entrance, allowing for expansion of Dana Lounge. Dana will now have nearly twice the area and a small stage for performances. Boren Lounge was also repurposed into a true student/study lounge, and will no longer be available for meetings.

Bryan Hall Courtyard

Folks can’t thumb their noses anymore at the barren concrete expanse that was Bryan Hall courtyard.

A $60,000 capital project to landscape the courtyard has created an inviting area of flowers and trees, surrounded by a brick patio. Varnell says the project is a transformation of the area that is exciting for more than 200 students who live there, and the many others who enjoy hanging out there. He said he saw one of the Bryan residence hall directors recently on campus and “she practically came up and hugged me.”

Hendricks Parking Lot

Beset by an increase in buses and cars, and years of wear and tear, Hendricks parking lot became one of the most maligned spots on campus. Adult students and staff use the lot most. Sitting at the edge of New Garden Road and George Fox Drive, it was hardly a pleasant entry point to campus.

This summer, a $300,000 refurbishing of the lot has made it more navigable — and a little greener, says Jim Dees, environmental sustainability coordinator. With increased landscaping and planted islands interspersed in the lot, Hendricks is now a much better manager of stormwater runoff.

The improvements cost 23 spaces in the lot, Varnell acknowledges, but adds that the water quality benefits are significant and required by the City of Greensboro.

Dees notes that the improved entryway to campus features plantings of deciduous hardwoods, including oaks, maples, willow oak and pecan trees. Drought resistant and native plants fill the lot’s interior islands and swales, creating a natural rainwater filtering system.

Additionally, the college installed artificial turf on Appenzeller Field in Armfield Athletic Center, and repurposed the pool space in the P.E. Center. Brian Wenger, assistant director of facilities and campus services, said the Hendricks lot and the sports field were two prime examples of “edges of campus that have not looked the greatest. We’re really hitting a lot of places (with these projects) that will be seen by our students.”

View a photo slide show of these projects.

Sept. 9, 2009