Extreme Makeover: Getting down to business

February 18, 2009

In December 2008, the prominent fountain that stood behind Tigert Hall sprung its last drop of water.

The fountain was demolished to make way for the William R. Hough Hall of the Warrington College of Business. Construction is scheduled to be completed during fall 2010.

The building will be equipped with classrooms, meeting space, an open-air atrium, a fast-food center, student lounges and locker rooms with showers, along with other amenities, according to Tracey Johnson, director of publications.

“We are bursting at the seams,” Johnson said. The college needs more space to accommodate its numerous events, such as conferences, luncheons and seminars.

The building has been designed to earn a high-level — silver or gold — LEED certification, in support of the University of Florida’s promotion of environmental quality and sustainability.

LEED’s third-party certification is awarded by a LEED official after construction is complete. UF currently has two gold-certified buildings, Rinker Hall and Library West, as well as eight buildings certified at the basic level.

Although the new building will be an innovative, state-of-the-art student resource, some Gators may be concerned about the loss of the well-known fountain.

“I personally have not received any complaints about the fountain,” said Johnson, “but others have heard remarks.”

UF senior Brittny Lambert said she was shocked when she noticed that the fountain was gone.

“When I turned onto Union Drive from 13th Street, I thought I went down the wrong road,” she said.

Ed Poppell, vice president of Business Affairs, said although there are no current plans to construct a new fountain, the Art in State Buildings Program soon will announce an opportunity for artists to design the building’s art.

The program places remarkable artwork in public spaces, according to UF’s Art in State Buildings Web site, http://www.arts.ufl.edu/asb/?p=2.

“The building will have art as required by law,” Poppell said. “Where and what has not been determined. That will occur closer to when the building is complete.”