Pacific Hall Update | Week of Jan. 8

Happy New Year! We are very excited to welcome students, faculty and staff back to a new and improved AuCoin Hall (formerly Pacific Hall) in just a few weeks, as we prepare to complete the project and reopen the building on Monday, Jan. 29, for the start of spring semester.

Learn more about the project which began May 2023.

Over the past three weeks, the construction team has been putting the finishing touches on the building, wrapping up in-scope work and completing some last-minute touch ups throughout the building to further refresh existing spaces. Punch walks were completed and the punch list generated the week of Dec. 18. During the last week of December and first week of January, crews worked to tackle these items and last-minute adds in parallel.

The project reached a major milestone on Jan. 4, as the project team achieved substantial completion. A final walk to verify completion of backpunch items (with a few known exceptions) is scheduled for Jan. 8, as well as a walk with the city building official to gain our Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO), which will allow us to begin moving tenants back into the building.

Students and employees will see a lot of activity and change on-site over the next few weeks, as we prepare to reopen the building. Once TCO is in hand, Walsh  construction will begin to ramp down their presence on-site. Teams will begin excavating the gravel and beginning to demobilize at the laydown area and inside the building this week. The construction fence will be taken down on Monday, Jan. 15. Walsh will continue to have spot crews on-site to complete remaining tasks such as repairing the curb at the fire lane, fixing miscellaneous minor door hardware and lighting issues, hanging signage, and blowing in bark dust throughout January.

There is the possibility that some minor corrections, namely door hardware, window film, etc., may need to be made in February, but these items will not affect the opening of the building nor impact its day-to-day functions. In this case, the project team will coordinate any remaining work such that it will not impact regular campus activities.

Beginning this week, Lightwerks will return to the site to complete the full buildout of the new AV systems. In parallel, teams from UIS will be reconnecting classroom technology and AV systems in existing classrooms, conference rooms, and offices. As tenants move back into the building, UIS will have members of the Helpdesk team on-site to assist users with setting up their offices and workstations, connecting phones and computers, and testing equipment.

Priority Movers will be on-site from Jan. 10 to 18 to begin moving furniture back into the building and setting up spaces. Tenants have received a schedule from Sarah Morse, project manager, outlining the move-in date for each tenant and space. While we will strive to adhere to this schedule as closely as possible, please understand that there are many moving parts and parallel activities happening over the next few weeks, as well some anticipated winter weather conditions, so we do greatly appreciate everyone’s patience and flexibility as we continue to monitor site conditions and coordinate on a daily basis.

Environments will be on-site from Jan. 16 to 18 to deliver, assemble and install the new furniture for the classrooms, computer labs, study pods and common spaces. The computer tables for the new computer lab 205 are scheduled to arrive Jan. 18 for install that day or the following.

During the final week of January, Jan Pro will be on-site to complete a full cleaning of the building prior to opening on Jan. 29. That week will also be an opportunity for tenants to continue unpacking boxes, setting up their personal spaces, and testing out new classroom equipment and configurations.

While the project team has worked diligently to ensure the move process goes smoothly, we do ask for and appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding as we navigate this dynamic final period of the project.

We very much look forward to welcoming you all back to AuCoin Hall in just a few short weeks. We have greatly appreciated everyone’s patience and understanding over the course of the project, as well as the curiosity, enthusiasm and support for the project we’ve received from members of the campus community. We can’t wait to share it with you!

Questions may be emailed to construction@groups.pacificu.edu.