The two newest buildings on campus recently marked some significant milestones: Exterior granite panels are being installed at the Kruizenga Arts Museum (KAM), and scaffolding has been removed from the Jack H. Miller Center for the Musical Arts main concert hall, where interior finish work is well underway.
Kruizenga Arts Museum
Inside the KAM, mechanical work in the lower level is nearing completion, and gallery spaces are getting finished out. Polished concrete floors, which have been protected during construction, will receive their final shine soon, and additional site work—including snowmelt, walkways and landscaping—will begin as soon as the weather warms. The building is on schedule to be done with construction the first of May, with any remaining work wrapped up by the end of that month.
Jack H. Miller Center for the Musical Arts
Interior brickwork in the lobby and woodwork in the concert and recital halls is being completed at the Miller Center for the Musical Arts. Next steps are to turn on the mechanical systems that will maintain the strict requirements for interior heat and humidity levels. The main organ will be installed by in May and tuned in October, following completion of the concert hall interior finish work. The custom-built organ is being constructed by Casavant Frères (Casavant Brothers) assembled at the manufacturer in Saint-Hyacin the, Quebec, Canada. The new three-manual and pedal organ will have 54 ranks of pipes, for a total of 3,092 pipes, ranging from some 20-feet tall to the size of a pencil.
Work in the plaza will begin this spring, and faculty expects to move into the classrooms and faculty and rehearsal studios in time for the fall semester. The first grand event in the main concert hall is planned for early 2016. Stay tuned for additional information about each building’s commissioning and grand opening, as well as schedules for public access and events.