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Kennedy-King College
Project of the Year: Higher Education/Research
The $254 million new Kennedy-King College campus on Chicago’s South Side is anchoring a renaissance in the Englewood neighborhood previously dominated by vacant storefronts and neglect.
Confidence in the area has spurred private developers and the Chicago Department of Housing to build residential facilities nearby. Also moving in are police and fire stations, public library, senior center, McDonald’s, Aldi’s and Walgreen’s.
Anchoring it all is the 40-acre Kennedy-King College, boasting an academic building, library, applied sciences building, athletic and student services center, athletic and student services building, culinary and theater building and daycare facility.
There were 95 subcontractors on the project, and contracts were built into smaller packages so that small and minority firms could get involved. Because community representation was key, 47% of the construction dollars were awarded to minority- and women-owned firms and vendors, with a nearly 60% minority construction workforce.
A sub-guard program was established, thereby making default insurance available. Without sub guard, many subcontractors would not have been able to place a bid.
Briefly Stalled Project
For years the project was stalled, facing setback after setback, due to project issues and unsuitable bids.
As a result, completing the project on time and in budget was a central goal. The campus was ready in summer 2007, thereby exceeding the goal of a fall 2007 start.
The site had held partially demolished homes and businesses, abandoned buildings and a neglected mall. Many foundations remained and needed to be removed.
The site was situated in a low-income-designated section of the city, with commitments to revitalize it with new streetscape from the Chicago Department of Transportation.
The project represents a first for the City Colleges of Chicago: The new Kennedy-King College is the first in a campus setting—40 acres encompassing 500,000 sq ft—rather than one or two buildings.
Although the college was not submitted for LEED certification, several environmental elements were integrated throughout the project.
For example, three buildings feature green-grid roofs; more than 90% of existing concrete was recycled and reused as backfill for roads and foundations; existing soil was recycled and used as backfill on baseball and soccer field; and 30 acres of landscaping exceeded by more than double the number of trees required by the city.
Jury Comments: “What a great project. It will help revitalize a previously troubled neighborhood and means a lot to the students who go there. The design is appropriate and represents many firsts. It was a massive project on both sides of 63rd Street. Look at the number of contractors they had, around 100.”
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