Mortenson Completes CC Arts Center/Denver Cathedral Gets an Interior Makeover/Glass-Free Solar Power System Debuts in Arvada

Colorado College Opens New Collaborative Arts Center

Construction on Colorado College’s Edith Kinney Gaylord Cornerstone Arts Center is complete, bringing to the Colorado Springs campus a 72,000-sq-ft building designed to be a catalyst for arts collaboration.

Mortenson Construction was the general contractor for the three-story, $33.4-million project that includes a 405-seat auditorium, black-box performance venue, sound stage, a 108-seat film screening room, the Interdisciplinary Experimental Arts space and a multipurpose room.

Antoine Predock, with Denver’s Anderson Mason Dale as the architect-of-record, designed the new arts center.

Construction on Aspen Birth Center Complete

The Weitz Co. of Denver recently completed the Aspen Birth Center, the first phase of Aspen Valley Hospital’s master plan, and the first major addition to the hospital in 30 years.

The Birth Center includes an expansion featuring four private labor/delivery/recovery rooms, four private post-partum rooms, one room for all aspects of the birthing experience and a nurses station.

The renovation of the old obstetrical unit has a nursery, antepartum room for assessment and observation, an education room, family waiting area and a sleep room for obstetricians and nurse midwives.

Heery-HLM Design of Denver was the project architect, and Carbondale’s DHM Design consulted on the landscape architecture.

The remaining three phases of the hospital’s master plan are currently in the conceptual review process by the city of Aspen.

Historic Denver Cathedral Gets Interior Restoration

Eidos Architects and Fransen Pittman General Contractors recently completed the first phase of restoration at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Denver.

The multiphased interior project began in 2005 with the design of a new altar by liturgical furniture artist Felix Granda of Madrid, Spain. The new altar then sparked the development of a master plan to restore the historic character of the cathedral’s interior by modifying many of the renovations done in the 1970s.

New liturgical furniture was designed and the high ambo wood railing was replaced with marble components from the original 1912 altar rail, found stored in one of the cathedral’s towers.

The newly renovated baptistery was relocated from the narthex into the nave and a glass wall was added between the two spaces to create a more open atmosphere.

Glass-Free Solar Power Unveiled in Arvada

In October, Arvada’s SkyFuel Inc. installed a new concentrating solar power system in Arvada.

With glass-free mirrors, a space frame that allows compact transportation and rapid field assembly and efficient drive and control systems, the SkyTrough system is expected to cut the cost of the parabolic trough concentrator by 35% compared to other commercially available systems, according to officials at SkyFuel.

The new solar power system is 375 ft long and 20 ft tall and features the largest parabolic trough modules to date, according to Dr. Arnold Leitner, SkyFuel founder and CEO.

It was developed with the support of the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory and a grant from New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson’s Energy Innovation Fund for SkyFuel’s research partnership with the University of New Mexico.

White Construction Group Begins Three New Projects

White Construction Group, a Colorado-based commercial general construction firm, has begun work on three new projects.

The AAA Waterproofing project in Denver involves an office addition and renovations to the existing facility. Project partners include AAA Waterproofing, owner; and Klump Brinkley Architecture, architect. The expected completion date is March 2009.

The Rifle Parks Maintenance project involves a new 11,171-sq-ft Park Maintenance Facility. Project partners include the city of Rifle, owner; and DPA Global Design, architect. The expected completion date is June 2009.

The Crystal Valley Ranch project in Castle Rock involves a new recreation center and community pool. Project partners include Crystal Valley Ranch Development Co., owner; and Fennell Group, architect. The expected completion date is June 2009.

Work on Monument Academy Charter School Complete

JE Dunn Construction, a general contractor with offices in Colorado Springs and Denver, recently completed construction of Monument Academy Charter School, a new 74,000-sq-ft school that replaces and increases the size of previous facilities.

Designed by Hutton Architectural Studios of Denver for Lewis Palmer School District 38, the three-story, K-8 school is the only charter school in the district. The project utilized donated or reused items, including furniture, doors, door hardware and flooring. Featuring a metal roof and earth tones with stone accents on the exterior, the school includes a gymnasium, play fields, multipurpose room, classrooms and academic support spaces.

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