LU campus in midst of $120 million transformation

Drive through Liberty University’s campus this summer and you enter a sprawling construction zone marked by dirt pits, bulldozers and half-finished buildings.

Over the next six years, Liberty plans to spend $120 million transforming campus into a pedestrian-friendly enclave with Jeffersonian-style buildings and stately lawns, said LU officials. This summer marks Liberty’s first phase of construction, which will eventually reach all corners of campus.

On a smaller scale, four other Lynchburg-area colleges have undertaken ambitious projects to update their campuses.

On Tuesday, Central Virginia Community College will unveil its $2.4 million culinary arts building during a ribbon-cutting ceremony with state Sen. Steve Newman. Meanwhile, Randolph College is in the throes of demolishing its decades-old student center, and replacing it with a $6 million renovation.

The net effect: Local colleges are spending millions of dollars this summer on construction projects, a sign of higher education’s growing influence on the Lynchburg economy.

Liberty University

With its rapidly growing student population, Liberty is at the center of Lynchburg’s campus construction boom. To date this year, the university has spent approximately $24 million on construction projects, and officials say the momentum will continue until the $120 million transformation is complete.

Liberty chancellor Jerry Falwell Jr. said “the timing is right” for Liberty for a campus makeover, citing low construction costs and interest rates as incentives to build.

“Our net assets have grown so much since 2006 that our board decided the best way to invest those assets are back in our own campus and in the city of Lynchburg,” Falwell said.

Liberty will pay for a bulk of the construction through the $120 million in facilities bonds the schools sold last December. Rather than pay cash for capital projects, as it has done in recent years, LU can now take advantage of the education facilities bonds’ low interest rates and tax-exempt financing, Falwell said.

This summer has ushered in the first wave of projects, which range from a 32,000-square-foot welcome center to an equestrian center.

Dressed in scaffolding, the half-finished Hancock Welcome Center stands tall on a hill near Williams Stadium. Inspired by Jeffersonian architecture, the welcome center features a red brick façade, white columns and a grand rotunda — a style that will be reflected in most new construction on campus, Falwell said. The building will serve as a first stop for prospective students and their families, housing a visitors’ center and meeting rooms.

By August, Liberty will complete a $5 million renovation to the DeMoss Learning Center, its main academic building. The project will bring classroom and offices to DeMoss’ fourth floor, which sat empty for years.

Other summer projects include a $4.5 million addition of turf fields for lacrosse, field hockey and intramural sports, the Sherwin Cook Tennis Center and an equestrian center behind Candlers Mountain in Campbell County.

Liberty recently finished converting the old Circuit City building in Candlers Station shopping center into a conference center. The school is also working on the pedestrian tunnel and bridge that will make it easier for students to access the shops on Wards Road.

Liberty will be home to “non-stop construction” for the next half-decade, said Charles Spence, director of planning and construction at LU. 

A central goal is to beautify campus and prepare Liberty for another surge of enrollment growth, Falwell said. Main campus will become more pedestrian-friendly as Liberty swaps roads for sidewalks and parking lots for green spaces.

Long-range plans include building a new dormitory complex behind the Vines Center. Liberty will replace the current one-story dorms with high-rise residence halls that can accommodate more students.

Four academic buildings near DeMoss Hall will be demolished to make room for a new academic quad featuring expansive lawns rivaling in size those at the University of Virginia, Falwell said. Liberty also plans to build a freestanding library, a pond and other additions. The library will also serve as the future home of the Jerry Falwell Museum.

Central Virginia Community College

Across Wards Road, Central Virginia Community College debuts its state-of-the-art culinary arts building this summer. Construction hiccups delayed construction by about eight months.

The sleek building features a curved roof and floor-to-ceiling windows, providing a modern edge to CVCC’s otherwise non-descript campus buildings. It’s home to CVCC’s nascent culinary arts program, which was launched last fall to meet Lynchburg’s growing need for trained chefs and food services managers.

The culinary arts school currently enrolls about 80 students, up from 53 last year, said program head Dominick Launi.

“It’s exciting. We really anticipate the whole program getting full blown this fall,” Launi said.

By early fall, CVCC expects to finish a $300,000 fitness center in Amherst Hall that will house a weight and cardio room, aerobics studio and locker rooms, said John Poole, CVCC’s vice president of finance and administration. The fitness center will give students a place to complete their physical education requirement, which in the past was outsourced to Gold’s Gym. The center will also be open to students, faculty and staff for personal use when P.E. classes are not in session.

“It really fills a great need because we will be able to do it all right here on campus,” Poole said.

 Randolph College

This summer, Randolph College began the demolition phase of a $6 million overhaul to its student center, which has been fully funded by alumnae donors.

The project will overhaul the current student center, a three-story wing of Main Hall that was built in 1932. The new design will preserve some elements of the building’s historic architecture while adding new features like a 90-seat theater and a fitness center with views of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

“In a sense, it’s the beginning of a total transformation of the campus that we’re hoping to build on,” said Randolph president john Klein.

Right now, the old student center is a demolition zone covered in dirt and dust. Outside, the red brick walls remain untouched while the interior has been stripped from top to bottom.

Historical pieces, like the chapel organ and stained glass window, have been temporarily removed for safe keeping while the construction continues.

The renovation will cause a major disruption this fall, as the former student center — once a hub for student life — is gutted to make way for the changes. Randolph has relocated student activities and facilities to reduce inconvenience for students.

The college has also launched a number of small-scale projects this summer, including renovations to the library and tennis court. The bookstore is relocating from the Barnes & Noble on Rivermont Avenue to a site near the dining hall on main campus.

Klein said the time is ripe to invest in efforts aimed at modernizing campus.

“We feel that the renovation of our facilities is important and we haven’t focused on that for a while,” Klein said. “I think that we expect to continue to have major projects, we just have to fundraise for them.”

Lynchburg College

Dormitory upgrades and environmental initiatives top the list for summer upgrades at Lynchburg College.

To reduce the college’s reliance on coal, Lynchburg College is installing a solar hot water heating system on the roof of one of its dormitories, Montgomery Hall. This dormitory has a history of using the sun for energy; solar panels were installed in the 1970s and lasted for about 20 years.

The solar hot water heaters will use the sun’s rays to heat water that will be used in the dorm for showers, washing clothes and other uses. Solar energy is expected to a make a small but significant dent in reducing LC’s energy bill.

“It should pay for itself it about nine years and it has a life of about 30 years,” physical plant director Dave Fisher said of the $190,000 project.

Lynchburg College is also implementing about $700,000 in upgrades to the building that houses the fledgling physical therapy program at the intersection of Lakeside Drive and Monticello Avenue. Most of the upgrades are external, including an expansion to the parking lot and beautifying the entrance with a brick retaining wall.

To keep up with growing enrollment numbers, Lynchburg College is undertaking about $1.5 million in dormitory improvements and modernizations. The college also bought a six-unit apartment building last spring from Langley Properties. The apartments are being converted into campus-run housing.

Fisher said that LC’s summer construction is on the “light side” compared to years past. The college is in the early phases of fundraising for a new student center, but there is currently no start date for that project.

Sweet Briar College and the Virginia University of Lynchburg are not undertaking major construction projects this summer.

VUL has developed plans to build a dormitory to accommodate the school’s growing enrollment; however a construction date has not yet been set, said Dave Evans, project manager at VUL.

“The issue right now is financing,” he said.