The Ohio University Convocation Center



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Table Of Contents

I. Executive Summary (Alex Couch)……………………………….……………3

II. Organization & Facility (Storm Timson)…………………………………..3

Mission Statement………………………………………………………………….4

Goals & Objectives………………………………………………………………….4

III. Planning (Laura Montag)

Summary of Needs Assessment………………………………………………5

Planning Committee Members…………………………………………..…..5

IV. Architects (Laura Montag)

Questions For Prospective Architects………………………………………6

Architects Considered……………………………………………………………..6

Rationale for Selected Architect………………………………………………7

V. Consultants (Laura Montag)

Questions For Prospective Consultants……………………………………7

Consultants Considered…………………………………………………………..8

Rationale for Selected Consultant……………………………………………8

VI. ADA Requirements (Tyler McCalla)………………………………………….9

VII. Materials Needed for Project (Storm Timson)……………………..….9

VIII. Floor Plan (Alex Couch)……………………………………………………….…11

IX. Project Cost (Storm Timson)………………………………………………….12

X. Summary (All)……………………………………………………………………….12

Executive Summary

Our objective, while teaming up with RVC Architects is to make the Convocation Center more accessible to handicapped persons and try to get closer to ADA regulations. The buildings original construction date was in the 1960’s so they are not required to meet ADA regulations due to the grandfather clause, but we felt that the percentage of disabled people in Athens makes this a top priority when evaluating the convocation center.

Due to the lack of elevators, as well as accessible seating, we believe the construction of the new features will lure in those who would have not been able to attend events in the past. The goals of our objectives are to construct new ways for handicapped persons to be able to use and enjoy the Convocation Center.

The reconstruction will take place in two different areas of the Convocation Center. The first area will be completed in the rear of the building starting with the elevator. We will be adding one elevator next to the already in place maintenance elevator. The second construction site is located in the arena area of the building. We will be removing two rows of seating from sixteen sections of the lower level seating and replacing the areas with a flat surface for handicap seating. Each handicap seat will also have one companion seat. By adding in these seats, we open up 104 handicap seating which falls 16 seats shy of the ADA regulations.

With the construction of these new features, we feel the Convocation will be better suited for those who are handicapped.

Organization & Facility

The 13,080-seat Convocation Center, first opened in 1968, is the home site for the Ohio University basketball, volleyball and wrestling teams. The total cost in the facility was approximately $8.2 million, and the facility still exhibits a rather “first-class appearance” with the very latest in modern facilities, equipment and comfort. The Convocation Center, one of the largest facilities in the region, can hold more than 15,000. The facility is a pretty realistic and ideal site for things such as graduation concerts, commencements, athletic games and events, trade shows and many other activities. Brubaker and Brandt Architects of Columbus were the original designers of the circular building with Knowlton Construction Company of Bellefontaine serving as the prime contractor. It houses athletic administration and coaches' offices, locker rooms and a training room. Dormitory rooms above the concourse are home to students during the academic year.

The Convocation Center is 328 feet in diameter with the top of the dome 134 feet, 10 inches above ground level parking and 123 feet, four inches above the playing floor. The roof is aluminum over wood fiber while the main arena floor is composed of a spring-supported two-layer maple wood system. Thanks to a partnership with G&J Pepsi, four new Daktronics scoreboards made their debut in the Convocation Center during the 2003-04 seasons. Two of them feature eight-by-seven-feet video screens for viewing replays, graphics and statistics. A new playing court was also installed, making it an even more attractive venue for intercollegiate athletics. Improved, television quality lighting, a permanent press row, and an expanded camera deck also highlight the Convocation Center's recent improvements. The showcase of Ohio Basketball is the Vern and Marion Alden Basketball Suite, completed in 1997. It houses the men's and women's basketball offices, video rooms, and a conference room. A complete renovation of the interior components included the donation of a big-screen television and installation of new furniture and carpeting.

Mission Statement:

The mission of Ohio University Athletics is to successfully develop the student-athlete as a person, student and athlete.

Goals & Objectives:

1. Use the construction of this facility as a visual motivator from an aesthetics perspective, resulting in more attraction that will solicit to a more diverse population in terms of ADA reliant. Two specific objectives that would help achieve this goal would be to figure out the cost of what it would be to carry out this operation and by contacting different paving companies and researching the cost of different materials that will best suit the idea of what we are going for.

2. Secondly, our mission is to gain recruits, educate, advance, and graduate students and student-athletes within an environment that pursues excellence, entertains our constituents, and accentuates championship performance. Two specific Objectives that would help achieve this goal would be… A: Our objective is to serve the community and students better by resurfacing all of the ramps around the Convocation Center with a cost efficient substance that will be of quality, freeze resistant and will serve its sole purpose, which is to not freeze and will not peel or chip away due to weathering. B: In relevance to that objective, we also want to ensure the safety as well as quality insurance of the surface that we purchase.

3. Our goal is to be the model program in the Mid -American Conference. We can achieve this by simply enhancing the image of the University and the community, and create a valuable, worthwhile experience for our student-athletes and community. Our objectives for this are simply driven through athletics and student excellence. Competitiveness through our athletics and championship performances generate more revenue to help possibly fund construction.

Planning

Summary of Needs Assessment:

When conducting our needs assessment of the Convocation Center, we gathered our information via online research, an interview with the facility director, and a survey that we handed out to both student athletes and general users of the facility. For our online research we gathered information regarding the Convocation Center history, the community that uses the Convocation Center, and other general information. As for the interview with the director, Jason Farmer, we asked an extensive series of questions about the maintenance, programming, risk management, retail operations, financing, etc. concerning this facility.

Lastly, we created two different surveys, one for student athletes and one for general users. We passed out the student athlete surveys to the coaches to give to their athletes, and we asked them to rate the Convocation Center regarding the facility as a whole, the locker rooms, the maintenance of the building, and strengths and weaknesses that the facility has. For the general users, we handed out surveys at one of the women’s basketball games and asked questions concerning the seating, the bathrooms, parking and vehicle traffic, the flow of people, and also if they had any suggestions for improvements.

Based on the results that we received from the interview with Mr. Farmer, the suggestions made by general users, and the laws about accessibility, we found that there is not only a growing need for accessibility, but also an obligation for the Convocation Center to become ADA compliant. This proposal will focus on the installation of a two-story elevator at the south entrance of the Convocation Center, as well as the installment of no less than 104 accessible seats inside of the arena.

Planning Committee Members:

Our “dream team” planning committee consists of H.R. Gray ADA consultants, along with RVC Architects, Inc. The selection of these companies was made after considering the companies’ locations, pricing, portfolio, and overall attitude toward the project. We believe that it is essential for the companies that we hire to have a history of excellence in all their areas of service. With this being said, H.R. Gray and RVC Architects, Inc. reach the standard of professionalism and excellence that we are looking for.

Architecture & Construction

Construction:

To come up with an estimated construction cost for this project we worked with a construction/renovation company called Montag Remodeling, located in Cincinnati, Ohio. Since the architecture company that we hire will most likely decide on a construction company to sub out the work to, we simply used Montag Remodeling as a resource to estimate the total construction cost. While Mr. Montag of Montag Remodeling only had limited information provided to him, he did estimate the cost to be between $150,000-$200,000 to install an elevator, remove seating in the arena, and to add more accessible seating. If we decide to install an elevator onto the outside of the Convocation Center, the cost is more likely to be near $200,000 due to that fact that we would have to build an addition to the outside of the facility. However, given that we work with our architects to find a location for the elevator inside, the cost will be nearer to $150,000. To follow, under the “project cost” section of this proposal, is a more detailed breakdown of the costs, which amounts to a total cost of materials and labor of $184,352.

Questions for Prospective Architects:

*The questions listed below are questions that should be asked when searching for an architect for this project. Due to lack of the ability to communicate with our prospective architects, we were not provided with sufficient answers, and therefore our architect selection was not necessarily based on answers to these questions.

1. How often do you work on projects ADA related?

2. What kind of services do you typically offer?

3. What kind of services do you typically hire a sub-contractor for?

4. How often do you work with ADA consultants?

5. What is the level of cost involved in a project like this?

6. Will there be a cost for travel included?

7. Are you experienced with the installation of elevators into commercial or educational facilities? If not, is this a service that you could contract out?

8. What is the expected amount of time to complete this project?

Architects Considered:

RVC Architects, located in Athens, Ohio is one of the architecture companies that we first considered, mainly due to their experience in working with Ohio University on various academic buildings such as Gordy, Stocker, and Grover. Also, another benefit of working with this company is that they are located directly in Athens and therefore there would be no need to pay travel fees. RVC Architects estimated an architecture cost of 12% of the total construction cost.

BHDP Architecture, located in Columbus, Ohio was considered due to their relatively close location, even though there would be a travel fee included. This company, in part, specializes in the architecture of higher education campuses and workplaces, so this was a great selling point when considering them. BHDP Architecture estimated an architecture cost of 12% of the total construction cost.

Phillip Markwood Architects, Inc., located in Columbus, Ohio was considered not only because they are located in Columbus, but also because they have experience with academic and commercial buildings, which is something we were looking for. This company estimated an architecture cost of 13% of the total construction cost.

Rationale for Selected Architect:

These architectural fees were all based on a roughly estimated construction cost of $150,000 to $200,000, which would include the installation of a two-story elevator, the removal of about 300 seats in the arena, and the insertion of 104 accessible seats. With this being said, RVC Architects would charge $18,000-$24,000 for the project, BHDP Architecture would charge $18,000-$24,000 plus a travel fee of $600-$800, and Phillip Markwood Architects, Inc. would charge $19,500-$26,000 plus a travel fee of $600-$800. When considering these costs, the company location, and the experience of the company, we decided to work with RVC Architects in Athens, Ohio.

Since RVC Architects are located in Athens, there is no fee to be paid for travel. Also, this company has worked with Ohio University on multiple projects including the renovations of Grover, Gordy, and Stocker. All of their previous projects on campus have had great results and been done in a timely and professional manner. Another benefit to hiring RVC Architects is that they focus on finding ways to minimize costs to fit their clients’ budgets. They also meet our requirements in that they have had experience with ADA renovations and have a number of sub-contractors that they work with in order to produce the most exceptional work. Additionally, they estimate about 2 months for construction time, so this allows for work to be done during the summer, while most students and student athletes are away.

Consultants

Questions for Prospective Consultants:

*The questions listed below are questions that should be asked when searching for a consultant for this project. Due to lack of the ability to communicate with our prospective consultants, we were not provided with sufficient answers, and therefore our consultant selection was not necessarily based on answers to these questions.

1. What do we need to consider in this project to become ADA compliant?

2. What kinds of features are needed in an elevator?

3. What services would you provide for this project and is there a fee for those services?

4. Is there state or federal funding available for a project like this?

5. How would you be involved in the project?

6. Do you do inspections before, during, and after the completion of the project?

7. What are some other projects like this that you have been involved in?

8. What is the level of cost involved?

9. Should we follow the new set of ADA laws or the old ones?

10. Since we don’t have the budget to become completely ADA compliant, which areas should we focus on now?

Consultants Considered:

The two consulting companies that we considered were H.R. Gray located in Columbus, Ohio and ADA Consultant Services located in Loomis, California. The reasons we considered H.R. Gray are because they are located nearby, they have experience working with recreational facilities, and most importantly they work with facilities specifically on improving ADA compliance. H.R. Gray estimated a cost of $5,000 for their services plus additional expenses such as travel, food, and hotel expenses.

On the other hand, ADA Consultant Services has a very good reputation for ADA consulting and comes highly recommended to all. Despite their location, this company has copious amounts of experience working with companies in order to make them ADA compliant. They estimated a cost of $5,000-$6,000 for their services plus additional expenses, including travel, food, and hotel expenses. After reviewing each company based on estimated cost of services, location, and experience, we decided to work with H.R. Gray.

Rationale for Selected Consultant:

Our main reasoning for working with H.R. Gray is that their fee for their service is significantly lower than that of ADA Consultant Services, especially when considering the additional expenses that are included. Also, we are aware that H.R. Gray worked with Ohio State University in constructing the RPAC facility on campus, which was a great success. We were also impressed with H.R. Gray’s level of professionalism, their willingness to provide us with appropriate information, and their great attitude toward the project.

Requirements

Some of the requirements that the Convocation Center would require are those towards ADA. The seating in these facilities requires it to be accessible to people with disabilities so they, their families, and friends can enjoy equal access to the entertainment that is being provided. The wheelchair seating locations must be on an accessible route that provides access from parking and transportation areas and that connects to all public areas. In facilities such as the Convocation Center spectators are often expected to stand up during events such as basketball and volleyball. In these circumstances it is required to provide a line of sight over standing spectators for the people using these wheel chair areas.

These wheelchair-seating locations also should be provided within the facility in more than just one area. There should be 6 plus 1 additional space for each total seating capacity increase of 100. Each accessible seating area shall have provisions for companion seating and shall be located on an accessible route that also serves as a means of emergency.  The ramps within the Convocation Center should have level landings at bottom and top of each ramp and each ramp run. The landing should be at least as wide as the ramp run leading to it. Handrails should also be provided along both sides of ramp segments and if handrails are not continuous, they should extend at least 12 inches beyond the top and bottom of the ramp segment, and should be parallel with the ground surface.

Some of the program requirements for facilities like the Convocation Center involve elevators. Floors above or below the accessible ground floor must meet the requirements of this section except for elevator service. If toilet or bathing facilities are provided on a level not served by an elevator, then toilet or bathing facilities must be provided on the accessible ground floor.

Materials Needed

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Floor Plan

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Project Cost

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Summary

To summarize, the results from our needs assessment exhibit that there is a need for ADA compliance in the Convocation Center. Most importantly, there are a new set of revised ADA laws that will be implemented on March 15, 2012, that reinforce that facilities have an obligation to comply to ADA standards. We understand that renovations to become fully compliant are not in Ohio University’s budget, however, small steps can be taken in order to reach full compliance.

Therefore, we have proposed a set of renovations that will be done in order to become more ADA efficient, and will allow for people using the facility to recognize a difference in the changes made. These recommendations should be taken into extreme consideration, due to the legal obligation set forth by the Americans with Disabilities Act.

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