Construction Progresses on Roux Center for the Environment at Bowdoin College

Bowdoin College's newest building—the Roux Center for the Environment—is gradually taking shape, on track to open next fall on the college's Brunswick, ME campus.

The Center, which is located at the corner of College St. and Harpswell Rd., is funded by a lead gift from David and Barbara Roux. When it is open, it will bring together faculty and students from across the College’s curriculum, fostering collaboration and creativity in the teaching and study of the environment.

Bowdoin Roux Center

Besides offices, classrooms, and labs, the 29,167 square-foot center will contain study spaces, a terrace, a green roof, and “The Lantern,” a glassed-in auditorium space at the front of the building. The building is designed to welcome all, to be a space not only for teaching and research but also for performances, community forums, social gatherings, and talks.

To date, Roux Center construction and design team—Warren Construction Group and Cambridge Seven Associates architects—have already erected steel columns and finished the elevator shaft.

The steel structure, along with corrugated metal decks, supports the concrete slab floors, which will be placed over the next couple of months. The concrete for the basement and first floor have already been placed. To work through the winter, there are heaters in the basement and the structure will be enclosed with tarps.

“The pretty stuff will start in late spring and early summer,” says Bowdoin Director of Capital Projects Don Borkowski, who is overseeing the project. “It’ll start to come together then.”

Featured

  • Vanderbilt to Partner with ABM for Campus Preservation and Modernization

    Vanderbilt University recently announced that it has selected ABM Performance Solutions for a preservation and modernization project at its New York City campus, according to a news release. ABM will deliver its end-to-end ABM Performance Solutions (APS) model to manage critical operations during renovation and maintenance.

  • Pitzer College

    Designing for Change in Higher Ed Learning Environments

    Higher education will continue to evolve, and learning environments must evolve with it. By prioritizing adaptable infrastructure, thoughtful reuse, strong energy performance, and wellness-centered design, campuses can create spaces that support learning today while remaining flexible for the future.

  • Harvard Announces Replacement Facility for Native American Program

    Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., recently announced that construction will begin this spring on a new home for its Native American Program, according to university news. The 6,500-square-foot, all-electric building will stand three stories and serve as the central hub for the Harvard University Native American Program (HUNAP).

  • 144-Year-Old High-School Campus Debuts New Academic Facility

    San Diego High School (SDHS) in San Diego, Calif., recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new student services and classroom building; the project is part of a larger SDHS Whole Site Modernization project that began in 2022.