VALDOSTA — While construction on the new Georgia Hall has already started at Valdosta State University, the official groundbreaking was held Wednesday.
The original dormitory, built in the 1960's, was torn down earlier this year. The new Georgia Hall will have 494 beds in two- and four-bedroom suites.
President Patrick Schloss said that the university is in the middle of a construction boom when most schools are cutting costs and rolling back spending.
The students who will live in the future hall will be accustomed to amenities that were not features in residence halls built in the 1960's and 1970's, he said. Keeping students on campus will improve retention rates at the university, Schloss said.
Through a partnership with Ambling University Development Group, Juneau Construction and VSU, more than 2,100 beds have been renovated or built on campus, Curt Fowler, vice president for Ambling, said.
Nancy C. Juneau, chief executive officer of the Juneau Company, said that Georgia Hall will be the sixth building the company has either renovated or built on the campus.
The housing facility will feature a SMART classroom that will accommodate 40 people, a game room, a multi-purpose room and other common areas. The projected cost of the project is $22,850,000.
Ambling University Development Group and Carter Development are the developers for the project, and Niles Bolton Associates is designing the hall. Construction on the project will be by the Juneau Company.
The university's funds for the construction are through public-private ventures with the sale of tax-exempt bonds.
Local News
Related Photos
-
A rendering of the new Georgia Hall under construction on the campus of Valdosta State University.
-
Ambling University Development Group Vice President Curt Fowler, Juneau Company Chief Executive Office Nancy Juneau, Tom Harding, Valdosta State University Auxiliary Services Director Rob Kellner, RHA representative Chad Freeman, Valdosta State University President Dr. Patrick J. Schloss and John Jokerst ceremoniously break ground on the building site of the new Georgia Hall on the Valdosta State University main campus Wednesday.
Discussion
VSU breaks ground on new residence hall
- Local News
-
-
Dougherty Gang pleads not guilty; Trial to be in Valdosta
The three Dougherty siblings, accused of a brash string of crimes in three states, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to federal indictments against them for the alleged robbery of a Valdosta bank last year.
-
Teachers out when school’s in: Facing forced furloughs
Furlough days have been a constant struggle for many area schools during the last few years.
-
Lanier senior graduates college one week before high school
As most of the Lanier County High School 2012 senior class looks forward to college, one LCHS senior is ahead of the game.
-
Welcome to Valdosta’s newest public art
Driving near the Annette Howell Turner Center for the Arts, you may have seen a colorful collection of items arranged along a grassy lot.
It is the finished result of a recent community-art project sponsored by the Public Art Advisory Committee. Called “Sprung: Shapes of Community,” the committee invited the public to help install the work on a recent Saturday as a kick-off event for raising public awareness of sculpture and public art within the community.
Atlanta-based sculptor Jeff Mather led Valdosta-area participants in visualizing and creating the temporary art work. -
Fugitive siblings return to Georgia
Three siblings, accused of a 2011 multi-state crime spree and the subjects of a nationwide manhunt last year, are set to appear today in an Albany federal courtroom to face charges stemming from a Valdosta bank robbery last summer.
-
Furloughs for school employees
The Valdosta Board of Education voted to implement furlough days for all Valdosta City Schools personnel and staff at Monday night’s regular session meeting.
-
Hart a picture of forgiveness
Meet Tammy Hart, who works at a Christian bookstore in Valdosta.
-
Lowndes County has gone Republican in presidential votes for half-century
Signing the 1964 Civil Rights Act into law, President Lyndon B. Johnson reportedly said, “There goes the South for a generation.”
As a Democrat, Johnson was referring to his party losing power in the South. Forty-eight years later, this prediction may still hold true throughout the South generally, and in Lowndes County specifically, regarding presidential elections. -
Man shot outside lounge
Police are investigating an armed robbery outside a Valdosta lounge that left one man hospitalized with a gunshot wound, police said Sunday.
-
Brooks drug bust nets four
Four people were arrested in Brooks County on a number of drug-related charges early Saturday, according to the county sheriff.
- More Local News Headlines
-
