A Legacy Lives On: Giving a Storied Residence Hall a New Place to Call Home
Not only do residence halls house college students, they also house fond memories and mark the beginning of lifelong friendships and connections. Some historic residence halls have even housed generations over the years, making living in them a family tradition. When alumni visit these halls, they are reminded of so many memories from their college years and feel emotionally connected to their former homes which will always hold a special place in their hearts.
Tutwiler–one of these historic residence halls is located on the campus of the University of Alabama and is being rebuilt to house even more students and memories.
According to HPM President Mike Lanier, “To my memory, this is the single largest publicly bid project HPM has ever managed in our 22+ year history.”
The HPM preconstruction team and the University’s project teams have collaborated on this project over the last three years.
“The teams started working together on the project from its conception and are dedicated to ensuring the project is on schedule for completion and move-in ready for University students for the fall of 2022,” said Trent Hall, Senior Project Manager.
The five-story replacement to the historic residence hall includes a project budget of more than $140 million. It will exceed 300,000 square-feet and house 1,200+ freshman female students.
“The University and our team worked tirelessly cultivating the market for general contractors and subcontractors to bid the project in this overheated market we are all in, canvassing regionally trying to get qualified firms to pursue the project,” Lanier said. “Through it all they stuck to who we are and what we do at HPM day in and day out: evaluate, analyze, strategize, advise, listen, and counsel, but mostly lead.”
The Tutwiler residence hall will include double-occupancy units and community-style living spaces, and a feature of the residence hall will include keyless entry to the building. Additionally, the residence hall will include a food service venue, a storm shelter, and satellite Housing and Residential Community offices. Furthermore, furnishings are included in the project to fully equip all residence rooms, common areas, peripherals, and offices. Construction of the new residence hall began this fall and is scheduled to be completed in time for the 2022 fall semester.
