Construction to Start Soon on 834-space Parking Garage at Colorado State University

Note to Editors: A rendering of the garage is available with the news release at http://www.newsinfo.colostate.edu/.

In preparation for the construction of a new 834-space parking garage at Colorado State University, the parking lots between Prospect Road and Lake Street on Centre Avenue – #570 south of the Physiology building – will close beginning Monday, Dec. 22.

Currently, 249 spaces are available in the lots open to "A" permits and short-term parking. Upon completion, the four-story, 317,475-square-foot parking garage will have available spaces for 370 "Z" permits, 361 "A" permits and 103 short-term metered spaces as well as some office and retail space.

The garage is intended to replace parking spaces lost to construction of new buildings around campus.

A groundbreaking ceremony for the $18.1 million parking garage will be held at 2 p.m. Jan. 27 at the Lake Street location. Completion is set for spring 2010.

The parking garage has been designed to match the aesthetic elements of the surrounding buildings with the use of stone veneer. The new building will be roughly the height of existing buildings in the neighborhood so it won’t overshadow them.

Approximately 11,900 square feet on the first and second floors of the southwest corner of the building will be office space used by Parking Services. A police annex also will use some of that office space. The northwest corner of the garage will include 2,716 square feet of retail space, and the south side of the building will be 3,712 square feet of office space that Parking Services officials expect to lease.

Office and retail space is being incorporated to soften the look of the large concrete parking garage, giving the building a more commercial look along heavily traveled Prospect Road and to provide additional business services to the campus community. The area that will be used for office space could not have been used for parking spaces due to limited size and dimension.

Rent from business and retail operations in the building and parking fees will help recoup building costs and go toward operations, maintenance and possible future facilities.

The garage could be the first to receive Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Gold certification in the state. LEED is a Green Building Rating System, which provides standards for environmentally sustainable construction. The new parking facility will include indoor bike storage and 43 spaces designated for fuel-efficient vehicles. The materials used in construction will include more than 20 percent recycled materials supplied primarily by Colorado businesses.

To conserve water resources, native and adaptive vegetation will be planted throughout the site to reduce irrigation requirements. Interior water conservation will include the use of water-efficient plumbing fixtures. All interior finishes will be low-VOC (volatile organic compounds. The mechanical system has been designed to circulate fresh air on a consistent basis to help create a healthy work environment. Also, the lighting system will be an efficient interior induction system controlled by daylight sensors.

The parking garage has been designed by H + L Architecture. Shaw Construction is the general contractor overseeing the project.

Parking Services has suggested numerous alternative options for people who normally park in the lot closed for construction:

-Those who normally park in the "A" section of the lot are encouraged to park in the lot north of the Painter Building, where additional "A" designated spots will replace "Z" spaces.

-Those who have used the "Z" spots in the Painter lot should park in lots 575, 505 or 240.

-Those impacted by the temporary loss of meter spaces previously available at Lake and Center Avenues should park in lots 575, 505, 547 or the lot north of Christiansen Field.

A complete map of parking options on campus is available at www.parking.colostate.edu.

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