Arkansas Tech board OKs plans for new student center

An artist's rendering of the proposed new student union and recreation center at Arkansas Tech University in Russellville is shown in this 2022 courtesy photo.
An artist's rendering of the proposed new student union and recreation center at Arkansas Tech University in Russellville is shown in this 2022 courtesy photo.

Arkansas Tech University plans to build a student union and recreation center on its Russellville campus that an official said will be "a hub of student life and a landmark building."

The ATU board of trustees voted Thursday to approve the schematic, design method of finance and construction project budget for the proposed 94,802-square foot facility.

The cost of constructing the facility is estimated at $49.3 million. The board voted on Thursday to transfer $15.6 million in unrestricted reserves to support the project. The balance of the cost would come from the sale of revenue bonds, which will be presented to the board for its consideration in October. The board will take other votes during the course of the year associated with the project.

"Arkansas Tech University has boldly envisioned a new recreation center and student union building and a unifying plaza at the crossroads of campus," wrote Laury Fiorello, ATU vice president for administration and finance, in a memorandum to trustees. "This site is a central location slated to be a hub of student life and a landmark building for the university."

The new facility will be constructed on land now occupied by the W.O. Young Building, which will be demolished in September.

In 2019, Miller Boskus Lack of Fayetteville was selected as the lead architecture firm. The Dallas location of SmithGroup has assisted in planning the facility. The design team and representatives from Arkansas Tech have worked together to develop the program," Fiorello wrote in the memorandum, citing a series of campus visits and engaging students, staff and campus leaders.

The student union and recreation center will include space for a campus living room/lounge, individual and group fitness activities, two basketball courts, outdoor recreation, a cafe, events at multiple scales, student organizations, food service, a convenience store/spirit shop, a multiactivity court and multipurpose meeting rooms.

The schedule calls for construction to begin in August 2023 and continue through December 2024. Substantial completion of the project is scheduled for early 2025 with an estimated grand opening date of between June and August 2025.

Arkansas Tech had 9,640 students in fall 2021, according to the latest official enrollment information from the state Division of Higher Education.

Other action by trustees Thursday included:

• Adopting a pilot program for an undergraduate test-optional admissions policy that will establish a minimum 3.0 cumulative high school grade point average on a 4.0 scale or a minimum 2.0 cumulative high school grade point average on a 4.0 scale and a minimum 18 ACT composite score as the standards for unconditional admission for undergraduate freshmen on the Russellville campus of ATU.

• Awarding an $8,099,000 contract to Alessi Keyes Construction of North Little Rock for a renovation of Jones Residence Hall and selecting WER Architects of Little Rock to provide architectural services for a planned roof and exterior renovation project at Caraway Residence Hall.

• Extending the existing covid-19 sick leave policy for ATU employees through Aug. 30, 2023, and approving a new flexible work arrangement policy that will provide nonfaculty staff the opportunity to request varying degrees of remote work assignment and/or schedule adjustment.

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