If the building project continues to stay on schedule, the new 34,000-square-foot addition to the Campus Center building will be ready for use in Fall 2007.

Quality Construction
While the timeline for the new addition’s construction may seem long to some, the result will be a high-quality structure. This outcome is ensured because the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU) system sets its own standards for design and construction, which go beyond those required by Minnesota state building codes.

“MnSCU’s standards are high. They tend to make the total cost a bit higher and the construction time a bit longer, but they’re designed to make a building that’s going to last a long time,” says Roger Freeman, Facilities Director for Anoka-Ramsey Community College.

MnSCU assigns an owner representative to the building site to ensure the project’s quality and costs stay on track throughout the construction period. That representative is a partnership of Stanley Consultants and a local firm, Steve Knight of Knight Inspection Services. This arrangement allows Knight to be on site daily. In addition, Knight and Freeman hold project progress meetings with the project’s architect, DLR Group, the primary contractor, Donlar Construction, and various subcontractors every two weeks to review construction issues.

“The work is moving ahead smoothly, and we’re confident that we’re on track with the schedule and the costs,” Knight says.

Construction Photos
Community members wanting to watch as the Campus Center addition takes shape can visit a Web page set up by the college here: http://webs.anokaramsey.edu/construction/. Photos chronicling the construction progress will be posted periodically until the addition is complete.