Photos by Mark Graven
Staff Reporter
Progress at Max Salazar
Tag: construction
The New and Improved Smith Brasher Hall
By Hilary Broman
Senior Staff Reporter
It’s no secret that Smith Brasher Hall has reopened after its $24-million renovation, but many students might still have unanswered questions about the new building.
CNM Chronicle’s, Hilary Broman, sat down with Donna Diller, Dean of School of Business and Information Technology, to learn about the new and improved Smith Brasher Hall.
The renovation was paid for by a bond that was passed by the community.
With budget cuts taking place at CNM many students might wonder why CNM spent $24 million on the building renovation, Diller said, but those capital bonds can only be used for building improvements.
“Also, from an efficiency standpoint we were maxed out at our HVAC availability, the technology also needed to be improved for the building to have better access for technology in our classrooms.”
The original structure wasn’t completely torn down. It was just gutted.
“The new structure is much more user friendly for students, faculty, and staff,”
Originally built in 1982, Smith Brasher Hall had very traditional style classrooms, Diller said.
“It was very dark and there were not any encouraging gathering areas for students to work in.”
Now Smith Brasher Hall has a lot of natural light which creates a more inviting environment, but it is also effective from a sustainability standpoint, she said.
Having a lot of natural light allows CNM to use less electricity.
In addition to the natural light Smith Brasher Hall was redesigned with sustainability in mind.
Some of these features include, geo thermal wells that are pumped in the parking lot, solar panels to power the front outside area, and special parking spots for students who drive low emission, fuel saving vehicles.
There is a free parking lot immediately south of the building, Diller said, but there is parking that is even closer for fuel efficient vehicles.
These parking spots are to encourage sustainability efforts and give students who do drive low emission vehicles a parking perk.
Click here to see if your car qualifies for a Go Green Permit.
The outside front area of the building was designed with opportunities for growth in mind, Diller said.
“We anticipate having food trucks in that area and being able to have a farmer’s market, and student run kiosks in the future.”
Smith Brasher Hall is also equipped with 10 state of the art computer labs as well as tutor support for students who are learning programming, networking, cyber security, and cloud computing.
A new feature that the building never had before are focus rooms, which are private, comfortable spaces that seat about 6-8 students at a time.
They are great spaces where students can work on group projects or where faculty can work with students one on one, Diller said.
As an accessibility option there is one universal bathroom in Smith Brasher Hall.
The bathroom is to provide students with access to be able to use the restroom of their choice, and have that privacy.
“We have a diverse student population,” she said, “That is something that the school has a goal of moving towards; making sure we have that accessibility.”
Smith Brasher Hall is home to the School of Information and Technology.
They are already sharing the space with some faculty from the School of Math, Science, and Engineering, and the school of Communication, Humanities, and Social Sciences, as they get ready to renovate Max Salazar Hall which is scheduled to take place in 2018.
As CNM takes strides to a more sustainable campus Donna Diller said that she feels grateful.
“I think sometimes we take for granted the facilities that we have,” she said, “We are very fortunate to live and study and work together in a facility like this.”
Update on SB Construction
Progress of Construction at SB building on main campus
Editorial Cartoon | Issue 2 Vol. 21
Bringing community back to the front yard
By: Daniel Montaño
A construction project taking place behind CNM’s main campus on Buena Vista Drive and St. Cyr Avenue is intended to create friendships, community, sustainability and a super-adobe eco-dome, said Mitchell Olson, former CNM Art major.
Olson is one of the many volunteers participating in the construction. He said that the dome is part of a larger project within the apartment complex that will include many sustainable, eco-friendly aspects.
“We’re talking about beekeeping, gardens on the roof, water cisterns, community gardens, solar energy and integration with the public,” he said.
The dome itself is the hands-on portion of a workshop taught by Biko Casini, a guest instructor at Cal-Earth Institute, who said that he has built similar structures in Australia, West Africa, India and Europe.
Casini’s workshops focus on sustainable, green building practices and advanced energy solutions, and he said that the project also emphasizes the changes that can be made when people join together as a community in friendship.
“It’s very much an exercise in corrective synergy and what happens when you get a group of people who are motivated together. You can actually physically change and move the earth around,” Casini said.
Jesse Kalapa, owner of the building where construction is taking place, purchased the 10-unit rental property six years ago and said that at that time the building had a poor reputation for vagrancy and drug use.
Kalapa said he has been working to change this stigma ever since he purchased the property, and this community project is just one among many steps to build a self -sustaining eco-village in the University Heights area.
“Well, my primary intention for the property is that it’s the world’s most renowned model of sustainability. That’s a big goal but it’s coming to fruition through steps like this,” he said.
Kalapa also hopes to open his property up to the university community by establishing an accredited course in partnership with UNM or CNM that will focus on sustainable building practices, he said.
If Kalapa’s proposed partnership works out, he plans on turning one of the apartments into a live-in laboratory, he said.
“Someone could live there for a week or a month and learn the basic techniques of sustainability,” he said.
Most community environments similar to theS one Kalapa is building tend to focus on growing and selling vegetables to bring an income to the community, but Kalapa said he wants to use waste products within the urban environment as a major contributor to his project.
Kalapa gained experience with building solar panels from scrap materials during a trip he took to Ghana, and said that he plans on using waste materials like glass to build the solar panels that will be included in the final project.
“So I’m looking at resources a little bit differently than some hippy commune that’s growing corn and selling tomatoes at the growers market. I think that’s great and wonderful but I also have an element of permaculture, taking advantage of the resources at hand,” Kalapa said.
All of the structure’s components exceed building requirements. Kalapa met with city planners and zoning committee, and he said the super-adobe structure is considered a flexible form of a stabilized rammed earth structure under building codes, and that he is purposely leaving a five-foot opening in the top of the dome in order to meet building requirements.
“So it’s not considered a structure, it’s a garden wall,” Kalapa said.
Those looking to be a part of the community are more than welcome to simply walk up and speak to anyone at the construction site, Kalapa said
For more information on super-adobe construction, visit calearth.org, or to volunteer check out the project’s facebook page at facebook.com/2105stcyr. For information on renting an apartment, e-mail jessekalapa@gmail.com.