News Article

Building H Renovation Progresses

Sep 23, 2015

Florida SouthWestern State College’s (FSW) Building H on its Fort Myers campus is undergoing a complete renovation. Wright Construction is the general contractor for the project. State Public Education Capital Outlay (PECO) dollars paid $5M for the project. Building H is a two-story structure with 27,777 square feet under air.

The first phase of the project is the whole renovation of the building’s second floor and is scheduled for completion for classes in January 2016. Framing work for the 16,009 square foot floor is under way. At completion the second floor will include four general purpose labs, three faculty research mini labs, one physics lab, one organic chemistry lab, one general classroom, six faculty offices and an office for adjunct faculty.

“Building H was built in 1966 and has undergone minor projects over the years, but none to this level where the space has been completely gutted. In the end, this will modernize a nearly 50 year-old building, from more energy-efficient air-conditioning and updated electrical systems to modern labs and classroom space,” said Jim Osterling, Construction Manager/Building Official, FSW. “We’re doing the renovation work in two phases so that classes can still be held on the floor not being renovated at the time.”

“This building is at the heart of education for our students because nearly all of our students will have at least one class in it,” said Dr. Denis Wright, Provost, FSW.

The second phase of the project, set to begin in early 2016, will include the complete renovation of the ground floor, which encompasses 11,768 square feet. The ground floor will have a dean’s suite, 11 faculty offices, three classrooms and an 88-seat lecture hall.

Last Updated: September 23, 2015