Summer construction at WFU includes completion of young student walk

Work on the Young Student Walk, named in memory of the late J. Smith Young, a 1939 graduate of Wake Forest and a life trustee, began last summer with the north end of the Quad, which runs in front of Wait Chapel, and construction continued this summer on the portion in front of Reynolda Hall. The project was completed in mid-August.

Members of the Young family provided funding for the construction and an endowment for long-term maintenance of the Quad. Approximately 200,000 bricks were used for the project, and new planters, railings, expanded seating areas and improved drainage were installed as part of the project. Two ailing magnolia trees in front of Reynolda Hall were removed and will be replaced in October with Autumn Blaze maple trees. The university had attempted unsuccessfully to revive the magnolias. An approximately 600-pound, bronze rendering of the university’s seal is set in the brick in front of Reynolda Hall.

The addition to Calloway Hall was completed in July, and crews are now working to renovate the old portion of the building. When completed in January 2004, the more than 85,000-square-foot building will consist of Kirby Hall, home to the Calloway School of Business and Accountancy, and West Hall, which will house the computer science and mathematics departments. The entire facility will be known as the Calloway Center for Business, Math and Computer Science.

Kirby Hall is named after the F.M. Kirby Foundation for its $5 million donation to the project. Kirby Hall includes classroom and office space, room for group meetings, a technology center and a center for undergraduate entrepreneurship.

The Pruitt Football Wing of the Athletic Center was renovated during the summer and the project, which brought needed upgrades to the university’s athletic facilities, was completed in mid-July. The new Pruitt Football Center occupies the same amount of space as the old facility but features several technical upgrades, improved offices, a players’ lounge and a 110-locker, 3,500-square-foot locker room.

The renovated facility also has a separate room set aside for NFL scouts to watch film of prospective players and an auditorium big enough for the entire team to meet. The Reynolda Hall patio facing Magnolia Court was renovated to repair water damage on the outside wall and damage to limestone. Railings, limestone and steps on the patio were replaced and the area received a new paint job.

New cabinetry, flooring and fume hoods were installed in the chemistry lab in Salem Hall. The project was a furnishings and equipment upgrade for the entire lab and is one of the last projects needed to completely upgrade the facility.

The main lounge in Taylor Residence Hall was renovated during the summer to include a new study room, renovated bathrooms, new carpet and furniture and a new space for the piano. Also, a lounge in Taylor Residence Hall closest to the Quad has been renovated and turned into space for a coffee shop. The shop, which will be called Campus Grounds, is scheduled to open shortly after the start of the fall semester.