FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 30, 2010
Contact: Sarah Perry
(662) 329-7119
sperry@pa.muw.edu

MUW continues with Campus Master Plan

COLUMBUS, Miss. -- Mississippi University for Women is continuing renovations as part of its Campus Master Plan.

The Bureau of Buildings recently held the bid opening for Poindexter Hall, which will have more ADA accessibility (ramps and elevators), more and better restroom facilities, particularly for public use when performances take place, after renovations are complete.

“We have recommended the award of contract to the lowest and best bid, West Brothers,” said Nora Miller, MUW vice president for finance and administration.

Poindexter Hall, one of the 23 buildings on the MUW campus listed on the National Register of Historic Places, also will include classrooms, teaching studios, a music library, practice rooms and a recital hall.

The total project budget, which includes the demolition that has already occurred, the renovation, architectural and engineering fees, furnishings, etc. is $9,579,000. The entire amount is funded by the state of Mississippi general obligation bonds that have been approved by the Legislature.

Miller stated that the final contract documents for storm drainage and street repair project will soon be submitted with hopes of getting a bid date late summer or early fall. Funding, in the amount of $1,600,000, is available for this project from the state of Mississippi general obligation bonds.

Pre-planning for Fant Memorial Library is complete. Plans for improvement include a group meeting space, large multi-purpose rooms for classes and other activities, archives space for restoration, storage and display and a cyber-cafe to provide a retail dining space in a high-traffic area.

Plans for the library also include 24-hour zones of the library and an Automated Storage and Retrieval System (ASRS) for volumes not in frequent circulation. As the first ASRS in Mississippi, this robotic storage and retrieval system will allow students to “order” their books on-line from anywhere and the books will be waiting when they get to the library.

Fire suppression in 100 percent of MUW’s residence halls has been added to the Campus Master Plan, with the goal being to have all residence halls equipped with fire suppression by 2016. Fire suppression was added to Goen Hall last year and Frazer Hall fire suppression is currently under construction.

Not associated with the Campus Master Plan is the initiation of an energy management project totaling $1.1 million.