Until recently, not much had changed since The Wallace Residence Center was developed in the early “60s.
For the past four to five years, one or two Wallace floors have been renovated every summer, said Raymond Pankopf, director of Architectural and Engineering Services for University of Idaho Facilities Services.
“It”s an older facility,” Pankopf said. “And I”ll just say it this way, time is due to do something.”
By the end of August, eight floors of Wallace have been “refreshed,” as opposed to all-out renovations.
“A refresh of the architectural finish is replace floor coverings “¦ replace plumbing fixtures,” he said. “As opposed to what we”ve always done in the past is estimated, “Well let”s gut this thing and redo it.””
Pankopf said renovating one or two floors every summer was consistent with the amount of money they were allocated for the changes. Most of the people who worked on the floors were from the university, and Pankopf estimated the cost of materials used on each floor amounted to about $300,000.
The university is picking up the pace next summer though by getting approved to draw from central funds and hire a team to renovate the remaining 12 floors of Wallace during the summer of 2016, Pankopf said.
He said the team is made up of a contractor and an architect. The contractor, Ginno Construction Company, is based in Coeur d”Alene.
The architect, Castellaw Kom Architects (CKA), is based in Lewiston and has worked with UI on previous projects, Pankopf said.
The team plans to begin work right after students go home for the summer in May and will finish just before they return again in August, he said. Currently, the university is working on getting both the Ginno Construction Company and CKA under a contract by the end of September.
Pankopf said when the contract is confirmed they will have an official number for the project”s budget, but he estimates it will amount to approximately $4.2 million.
The newly refreshed floors will positively influence the student experience in future years, Pankopf said.
“The rooms are nicer, they”re cleaner,” Pankopf said. “And it shows the students that the university really cares about them.”
Erin Bamer can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @ErinBamer