UA students get hands-on experience

Charles C. Labenz Arizona Daily Wildcat Fourth-year architecture students (from left) Shaun Yauch, Matt Perkins and David Molinar stand in front of a practice model of a rammed earth block structure. The rammed earth blocks, which are made of fill dirt and cement, will be used next fall to make a 3,000-square-foot multipurpose building at the Rincon Vista Sports Complex at South Tucson Boulevard and East 15th Street.

Students in the Architecture 401/451 studio design class are in the final stages of planning before construction begins next fall on the Rincon Vista Recreation Field Facility for the Department of Campus Recreation.

Richard Romero, assistant director of the ropes course and "A" camp for Campus Recreation, initially thought of using students to design a storage shed for the ropes course equipment. Romero said he later realized the entire Campus Recreation Department could benefit by having a multipurpose facility at Rincon Vista Sports Complex.

"It seemed like a great idea to have students receive hands-on experience in architecture and construction while at the same time allowing us to build the facility at a much lower cost," Romero said.

Richard Brittain, assistant research professor of architecture, said the structure of the class has enabled students to be involved in the building process at a much deeper level than a normal classroom setting allows. Students will be able take their ideas from the conceptual level and turn them into reality, he said.

"In most of the classes, the students draw out one set of plans and never experience all of the engineering and revisions that take place to make a building work," Brittain said. "It's one thing to have the plans look good on paper, but when you get out there, one of the walls might be too short and not reach the roof."

Brittain said the class required each of the 14 students to develop an individual design for the project and then make a presentation to the client. Romero and Sam Sanders, a graduate assistant at the Student Recreation Center, evaluated the proposals and chose the design that best suited the practical and financial needs of the center.

Brittain said ideas from all of the student designs were incorporated into the final project that evolved throughout the semester.

"I think it's really good for the students to be exposed to the bureaucracy associated with working for the university and the need to accommodate financial constraints of the client," Sanders said.

Romero said the 3,000 square-foot building will have a ramada, classroom, storage area and an office at the field, located at South Tucson Boulevard and East 15th Street. He said the facility will also eliminate the need for portable restrooms.

Romero said what he believes may be most valuable to the students is the opportunity to actually help build the new facility.

"When construction begins this fall, we hope to have Recreation Center staff, students and community members involved with the project," Romero said.

Matt Perkins, a fourth-year architecture student, said he was excited by the idea of being involved in the building process.

"I think the learning experience gained from helping build it is an enormous benefit for students like myself who are limited by what we encounter in the classroom setting," Perkins said.

Brittain said the facility will use 2-foot thick rammed earth blocks for the walls. He said each block will consist of fill dirt mixed with about 3 percent cement. A plywood frame will hold the dirt until it dries.

"The process is like stacking giant legos on top of each other," said Shaun Yauch, a fourth-year architecture student involved with the project.

Yauch said the rammed earth blocks are similar to adobe and are good insulators and very economical.

David Molinar, another fourth-year student in the independent study course, said it was important to pick building materials that were subtle and not intrusive to neighborhoods adjacent to the field.

Like every building for the university, Romero said all building plans are approved by Facilities Design and Construction at the UA. Bruce Dawson, university project manager, said a majority of the construction will utilize student efforts, but certain areas such as plumbing, electrical and foundation work will be contracted in order to meet university codes and standards.

Brian Carswell, interim director of the Department of Campus Recreation, said the approximately $100,000 needed for the project will be primarily funded by a maintenance reserve account of the Rec Center. He said the actual cost of the project will depend on how much student labor will be used.

"The facility will be a valuable asset for intramurals, the ropes challenge course and special tournament events held at the field," Carswell said.

The tentative start date for construction of the facility is Aug. 20.