Work has begun on the demolition of Stokely Athletics Center and Gibbs Hall.
The university is making way for a new residence hall and dining facility and parking garage on the site at the corner of Volunteer and Lake Loudoun Boulevards. Plans are also in place to expand Haslam Field on the site.
The first step in taking down the buildings is to safely remove asbestos from the interior of the buildings. Abatement work has started on Stokely and Johnny Majors Drive has been closed to through traffic as part of the planned demolition. The contractor is doing preliminary demolition work on the upper floors of Gibbs. Once the asbestos abatement is complete, the buildings will be demolished and the ground prepared for the next phase of work. Demolition of both Stokely and Gibbs should be complete by summer.
The first phase calls for the building of a 1,000-space parking garage for students, faculty, staff, and visitors along Volunteer Boulevard. The garage is set to open in August 2016. The project is estimated at $31.8 million and will be paid for through parking fees and the issuance of revenue bonds.
The new residence hall will then be built close to the current Gibbs Hall location. The building is scheduled to open in spring 2017. It will have 586 bedrooms with shared living spaces providing housing for 684 students. The 33,000-square-foot residence hall will be open to male and female students. The hall’s dining facility will be open to all students, faculty, and staff. The $94 million project will be financed through student housing fees and revenue bonds.
Expanding Haslam Field is the third phase of the project, with a completion date of 2016. Once completed, the facility will have three full-size exterior grass outdoor practice fields along with the nearby indoor full-size practice field. This project is estimated to cost $10 million and will be funded solely by a private donor.
Built in 1958, Stokely Athletic Center closed its doors for good in December 2012. Memorabilia from its decades as home of the Volunteer men’s and women’s basketball teams is stored in other areas of campus. Gibbs Hall, which was built in 1963, closed to residents last spring. The dining hall portion of the building closed in December.
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C O N T A C T :
Karen Simsen (865-974-5186, karen.simsen@tennessee.edu)