The expansion initiative revitalizes existing 19-year-old building while adding a contemplative garden, walking trails to pristine campus
Hoar Construction today announced the completion of construction on a $17.5 million expansion initiative at the Lakeshore Foundation Master Campus in Homewood, Alabama near Birmingham. The Lakeshore Foundation is a non-profit organization providing opportunities for people with disabilities in Alabama and across the country to lead healthy, independent lives through physical activity, nutrition, research, advocacy and more. Lakeshore also serves as a training site for the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic teams, with on-campus housing to accommodate athletes.
The Lakeshore Foundation, KPS and Hoar worked together to provide state-of-the-art, ADA-compliant facilities and equipment for both athletes and local users over the past 20 years. Hoar served as general contractor on several recent projects across the campus, consisting of:
Multi-Purpose Facility Addition
The 21,000 SF expansion includes a multimedia lab, tele-consultation suites, innovation lab, video production lab, culinary/nutrition lab, clinical exercise lab, mindfulness lab, lobby, open office space, café and board room. The culinary lab includes a demonstration kitchen with adjustable-height stovetops and state-of-the art technology tools for nutritional and culinary education. The multimedia lab and tele-consultation suites feature flat-screen monitors and advanced audio-visual technology for staff to interact with athletes and users remotely.
Wallace Gym Renovation
In 2009, Lakeshore Foundation collaborated with UAB in a first-of-its-kind partnership between a major academic research university and a nonprofit serving individuals with physical disabilities. The gym renovation provided over 20,000 SF of research space, allowing UAB/Lakeshore to lead the world in research programs in rehabilitative science.
Magnolia Hall Renovation
The existing 8,900 SF building was completely renovated to create space for The Children’s Hospital of Alabama (Children’s Hospital), which now provides outpatient physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech and hearing rehabilitation services for children and young adults.
Outdoor Enhancements
To enrich the relaxing and meditative atmosphere surrounding the campus, and provide gathering spaces, several new outdoor spaces were created, including Campus Commons, a Contemplative Garden and a Woodland Walk.
“The new Master Campus brings technological upgrades to Lakeshore that will significantly impact how they interact with trainers while providing more outdoor space for users to meet and stay active together,” said Jeff Brasher, Project Manager at Hoar.
While Lakeshore is home to USA Wheelchair Rugby and provides training for other elite athletes, who train year-round at the campus’s state-of-the-art facilities, the center of the organization’s mission lies in its programming to helpthose with physical disabilities from the surrounding community stay active and achieve their health and fitness goals. Known as the “heart and soul” of Lakeshore, these users come to Lakeshore to focus on independence and maintain a healthy, active lifestyle. Lakeshore provides mentorship, nutrition education and fitnessandsports programs. Through its Lima Foxtrot programs, Lakeshore offers disabled veterans and injuredactive-duty military members opportunities for sports and recreation.
“The completion of our multi-year campus enhancement project marks a milestone in Lakeshore history,” said Jeff Underwood, Lakeshore Foundation president and CEO. “With the integration of new technologies, and the addition of more research and program areas in our new building, we are able to expand the wellness and activity offerings to reach more people in-person and online. Coupled with outdoor spaces that connect our campus facilities and provide accessible outdoor fitness and mindfulness options, we are able to provide a more holistic and expanded experience for more people than ever before, including those without local resources or transportation issues.”here. For more information on the Lakeshore Foundation, click here.
ABOUT HOAR CONSTRUCTION
Hoar Construction was founded 80 years ago, and throughout our history we’ve been committed to learning from every project to improve our processes and deliver the best building experience possible for our clients and partners. With seven offices in six states and more than 4,000 projects across nine market sectors, building is our business, but we’re more than builders. We’re partners to our clients and leaders through the entire development process to ensure we deliver the results our clients want and expect. Always building. Always improving. Always in process.
For more information about Hoar Construction, please visit www.hoar.com or visit us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn
ABOUT LAKESHORE FOUNDATION
Lakeshore Foundation’s activity, research and advocacy initiatives annually serve thousands of children and adults with physical disabilities and chronic health conditions. Through the UAB/ Lakeshore Research Collaborative, Lakeshore is home to the CDC-funded National Center on Health, Physical Activity and Disability (NCHPAD). NCHPAD works to create health equity for people with disability by providing assistance in the form of web-based materials and health communication endeavors. For more information, visit www.lakeshore.org and ww
