URI COE exterior
Kingston, RI – The University of Rhode Island selected Dimeo Construction Company to serve as its construction manager on two projects: the new College of Engineering and the Bliss Hall renovation, both designed by Ballinger.
The new 186,258sf College of Engineering Building, an H-shaped, six-story facility, which includes a walk-out lower level, six-story bridge structure, and two four-story office wings, replaces five separate buildings built in the 1950s and ’60s.
The first floor will have a large south-facing commons and computer lab and features a clear-span, no-columns commons area with a café as part of the bridge structure. The first floor also features a combination of instructional labs and interactive classrooms opening up to student interaction spaces.
The upper floors will comprise flexible, modular labs in close proximity to the faculty offices and graduate student workstations.
The new COE is seeking to obtain a LEED Silver rating.
URI Bliss Hall
The Bliss Hall project entails a complete demolition of the existing interior, including all the MEP, and removing a two-story addition that was used as an asphalt lab. The project also involves the replacement of the historic windows to mimic the original 1926 design.
The construction consists of erecting a modern metal panel and glass four-story addition to the historic building on the north side, installing all new MEP, and completely gutting the existing five-story building. It will then be fit out to meet the demands of the engineering school and will complement the new College of Engineering Building.
The renovated hall, designed by Ballinger, will house the dean of the Engineering School and his support staff, along with a mix of classrooms and lab spaces.
The original Bliss Hall Building, with its Westerly granite façade, was built in 1926 and originally housed the entire School of Engineering. The building was designated as a Historic Building in 2017.
