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Do IT this week: Layering
$7.1 million renovation, new construction elements are eco-friendly
By Kathy Antoniotti
Beacon Journal staff writer
POSTED: 02:38 p.m. EDT, May 01, 2009
Amidst classes at Our Lady of the Elms today, dozens of construction workers, landscapers and volunteers were frantically putting the finishing touches on the new $7.1 million Elizabeth Ann Schaefer, O.P. Performing Arts and Athletic Center.
The new wing and renovated spaces have been designed using sustainable elements and reclaimed metals and materials. The gymnasium floor is made from second-grade wood, floors are covered with replaceable, formaldehyde-free carpet tiles and opaque window liners started out as plastic milk cartons.
''The sisters of Saint Domenic believe we are stewards for the earth, so we started with that idea right at the beginning,'' said Laura Feldman Tinney, executive director of operations.
The 16,000 square-foot new construction and renovation includes a gymnasium, walking track, fitness center, locker and training rooms and administrative offices. The performing arts studio, named for Ann Amer Brennan, a 1951 Elms graduate and wife of Akron entrepreneur David Brennan, was refurbished, including more than 500 42-year-old wood-and-iron auditorium seats.
''Putting them in a landfill would have been irresponsible,'' said Feldman Tinney.
Besides, using the old seats saved money, she said.
The school will open the new wing Saturday at a sold-out Fantasy Gala, the school's annual fund-raiser. Administration officials hope to raise $250,000 at the event for women's studies.
It will also be the first opportunity for patrons and parents to view the new construction and renovated areas of the school.
Construction, which started a year ago, was made possible in part by a $6 million donation from the Brennans, the largest donation in the school's history.
An additional $1.3 million was donated for the construction by Mike Toth and Lisa Holland-Toth, former president of Holland Oil and her sister Lynn Holland Gorman. The women, Elms alumni, have daughters attending the school.
It was Ann Brennan's decision to name the new addition for Sister Libby Schaefer, Prioress of the Sisters of Saint Domenic for seven years. Sister Libby died in 2004.
''It was very generous of her,'' Feldman Tinney said of Brennan on Friday.
Some people may be put off by the choice of colors and designs, Feldman Tinney said — especially the zebra-print carpet tiles students chose that line the spirit shop floor.
''We've found that all those young of heart love it. But it gives some people vertigo,'' she said.
Twenty-two Elms middle and high school students applied and were chosen 16 months ago for the Junior Corps, a group that included their ideas and suggestions in the renovations and construction.
The girls and administration members picked strong, feminine colors that would not soon become dated, said Julia Hershey, a 17-year-old senior from Akron who serves with the corps.
Estimating costs to avoid overruns were part of the job, she said.
''We were given some of the blueprints and estimated the number of bricks and ceiling tiles. We came very close,'' Hershey said.
The project came in under budget, Feldman-Tinney said.
It was the corps' decision to include a separate entry for visiting sports teams. Girls don't like to parade through other schools to get to their locker room, the girls reasoned.
Angie Hall, 18, a senior from Fairlawn, said she felt one of the best decisions the girls made is the opaque glass liners made from recycled plastic milk jugs designed to resemble bamboo. ''It lets light through and works like a separation,'' she said.
Hershey, who will attend Kettering University in Flint, Michigan in the fall, said the experience of serving on the project would help her in future studies to become an engineer.
''To say that I had something to do with such a big project is really a good feeling,'' she said.
Kathy Antoniotti can be reached at 330-996-3565 or kantoniotti@thebeaconjournal.com.
Amidst classes at Our Lady of the Elms today, dozens of construction workers, landscapers and volunteers were frantically putting the finishing touches on the new $7.1 million Elizabeth Ann Schaefer, O.P. Performing Arts and Athletic Center.
The new wing and renovated spaces have been designed using sustainable elements and reclaimed metals and materials. The gymnasium floor is made from second-grade wood, floors are covered with replaceable, formaldehyde-free carpet tiles and opaque window liners started out as plastic milk cartons.
''The sisters of Saint Domenic believe we are stewards for the earth, so we started with that idea right at the beginning,'' said Laura Feldman Tinney, executive director of operations.
The 16,000 square-foot new construction and renovation includes a gymnasium, walking track, fitness center, locker and training rooms and administrative offices. The performing arts studio, named for Ann Amer Brennan, a 1951 Elms graduate and wife of Akron entrepreneur David Brennan, was refurbished, including more than 500 42-year-old wood-and-iron auditorium seats.
''Putting them in a landfill would have been irresponsible,'' said Feldman Tinney.
Besides, using the old seats saved money, she said.
The school will open the new wing Saturday at a sold-out Fantasy Gala, the school's annual fund-raiser. Administration officials hope to raise $250,000 at the event for women's studies.
It will also be the first opportunity for patrons and parents to view the new construction and renovated areas of the school.
Construction, which started a year ago, was made possible in part by a $6 million donation from the Brennans, the largest donation in the school's history.
An additional $1.3 million was donated for the construction by Mike Toth and Lisa Holland-Toth, former president of Holland Oil and her sister Lynn Holland Gorman. The women, Elms alumni, have daughters attending the school.
It was Ann Brennan's decision to name the new addition for Sister Libby Schaefer, Prioress of the Sisters of Saint Domenic for seven years. Sister Libby died in 2004.
''It was very generous of her,'' Feldman Tinney said of Brennan on Friday.
Some people may be put off by the choice of colors and designs, Feldman Tinney said — especially the zebra-print carpet tiles students chose that line the spirit shop floor.
''We've found that all those young of heart love it. But it gives some people vertigo,'' she said.
Twenty-two Elms middle and high school students applied and were chosen 16 months ago for the Junior Corps, a group that included their ideas and suggestions in the renovations and construction.
The girls and administration members picked strong, feminine colors that would not soon become dated, said Julia Hershey, a 17-year-old senior from Akron who serves with the corps.
Estimating costs to avoid overruns were part of the job, she said.
''We were given some of the blueprints and estimated the number of bricks and ceiling tiles. We came very close,'' Hershey said.
The project came in under budget, Feldman-Tinney said.
It was the corps' decision to include a separate entry for visiting sports teams. Girls don't like to parade through other schools to get to their locker room, the girls reasoned.
Angie Hall, 18, a senior from Fairlawn, said she felt one of the best decisions the girls made is the opaque glass liners made from recycled plastic milk jugs designed to resemble bamboo. ''It lets light through and works like a separation,'' she said.
Hershey, who will attend Kettering University in Flint, Michigan in the fall, said the experience of serving on the project would help her in future studies to become an engineer.
''To say that I had something to do with such a big project is really a good feeling,'' she said.
Kathy Antoniotti can be reached at 330-996-3565 or kantoniotti@thebeaconjournal.com.
Comments
Click here to post your comments
Posted 04:25 PM, 05/01/2009
So now the wood preservatives will leech into the soil. That tomato is extra zesty.
Tallmadge, oh
Posted 06:11 PM, 05/01/2009
Congrats, OLE, from an Alum.
Canton, OH
Posted 06:40 PM, 05/01/2009
Props to the Elms. .They are an attribute to the Akron Community. . .
Akron, OH
Posted 05:32 PM, 05/02/2009
Yeah, but I heard enrollment is way down, and the school was small to start with. Tuition is too expensive. Why spend $7.1 million on expanding the school, when at least some of that money could have been used for scholarships so more kids could afford to go there?
rootstown, oh
Posted 09:17 PM, 05/02/2009
waste of money
