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

  • Deferred Maintenance Issues Growing at Universities, Gordian Reports

    U.S. colleges and universities are falling increasingly behind on facilities maintenance and repair, according to Gordian’s 13th annual State of Facilities in Higher Education report. The deferred capital renewal burden has reached $156 per gross square foot, an 8% increase over the previous year.

  • South Carolina District Starts Construction on $50M Middle School Renovation

    The Aiken County Public School District in North Augusta, S.C., recently held a groundbreaking ceremony for the $50-million renovation and expansion of North Augusta Middle School, according to a news release. The project’s funding comes from the 2024 renewal of a one-cent sales tax approved by local voters.

  • Chartwells Launches Campus Dining Evaluation Framework

    Contract food-service management provider Chartwells Higher Education recently announced the launch of BLUEPRINT, according to a news release. The evaluation framework was designed to provide a data-driven and customizable roadmap towards optimizing campus dining services and, by extension, the student experience.

  • Moline-Coal Valley School District to Consolidate Two Schools into New Facility

    The Moline-Coal Valley School District in Moline, Ill., recently broke ground on a new elementary school that will consolidate the students and staff from two existing schools, according to local news. Robert Ontiveros Elementary School will serve as the new home for Lincoln-Irving Elementary School and Willard Elementary School.