River Falls firm played major role in transforming UW-Stout center

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When UW-Stout leaders and Menomonie area dignitaries celebrated the opening of the renovated Memorial Student Center in April, representatives of Frisbie Architects celebrated with them.

The River Falls firm, along with Mackey Mitchell Architects of St. Louis, Mo., led the design team in transforming the 26-year old student union into a state-of-the-art facility.

“UW-Stout alumni visiting campus may not even recognize the building’s interior,” said Stephen Pederson, Hudson, Frisbie’s project manager.

“What was once a dark space that students just ‘passed through’ is now a light-filled, energetic venue that students and staff seemed to instantly embrace.”

He added, “After a year of design and another year of construction, it’s very refreshing to see how the campus is using this building to its fullest.”

The $19 million project includes more and better lounge and meeting space as well as new dining options. The bookstore was relocated to the front of the building.

The renovation features a new front entrance, a backyard with an outdoor amphitheater, an open interior with a prominent grand staircase, lots of natural light, more than 10,000 square feet of student lounge space and reconfigured conference and meeting rooms with state-of-the-art technology.

The design incorporated cutting-edge technology, flexibility and sustainability, said Frisbie Architects’ Vice President Shari Frisbie.

A focus on sustainability was central to the renovation. Nearly half the new carpet is recycled. Ceramic tile in the bathrooms is 99% recycled. The wood floor in the Terrace Café is 100% reclaimed lumber. Table tops, wall and ceiling treatments in first-floor booths and benches throughout are made with wood from the former bowling lanes. Restroom partitions and countertops are 100% recycled. Energy-efficient lights and hand-dryers were used throughout. Even the waste recycling stations were made from recycled milk cartons.

Frisbie Architects Inc. focuses on buildings for higher education, government, commercial, senior housing and churches and specializes in sustainable design projects. Since 1997, the firm has worked with over 150 clients on more than 700 projects mostly in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

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