UCA officials broke ground on an $18 million resident hall on Dec. 17 during a ceremony near the visitor’s stand at Estes Stadium.
Bear Hall, a 120,000-square-foot facility, will be the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) facility on campus. UCA President Allen Meadors said the LEED designation is just another step toward UCA becoming a more environmentally responsible campus.
Bear Hall will replace Minton Hall, which has been closed for the past three years. Minton will be demolished over the next two weeks. About 50,000 bricks from Minton will be used in the construction of Bear Hall.
Visit UCA’s YouTube page to see more of the ground breaking ceremony.
The residential hall will include 385 beds, three seminar rooms, two apartments, a large lobby area with a kitchen and laundry and study rooms.
The new resident hall is being funded through a bond issue. Part of the funds from the bond will be used to renovate other residential halls, said Diane Newton, vice president of finance and administration. About $2 million in improvements will be made to State, Conway, Hughes and Carmichael halls.
Bear Hall will feature twelve 20-person skyboxes on the fifth floor. The $2 million skyboxes are being built with private funds collected by the athletic department.
Bear Hall is scheduled to open in fall 2012.
