Construction has begun for the third phase of Legacy Park. This new phase will include eight new buildings, which will hold 132 beds.
“These added beds will relieve the pressure for the housing needs for students in the future,” President Dr. Bruce McLarty said.
These buildings will be exclusively residential housing for women and married students.
“The third phase of Legacy Park is on schedule to be completed by August of 2015,” McLarty said. “It is a continuation of (Chancellor) Dr. (David) Burks’ vision, which is for campus to feel like a neighborhood, not an institution. Nothing has been more popular than the community aspect of Legacy Park. People on and off campus talk about it all the time. Students love to live there and the alumni love the look of it. The fact that the buildings are named after people of Harding’s past cements the community of it.”
Other renovations that are in the five-year plan for the university include updating the Ganus Athletic Center, Brackett Library and the student center.
The Ganus Athletic Center will be made into a recreational center, complete with two floors. The first floor will contain workout machines that face the GAC lawn, basketball courts, volleyball courts, indoor soccer, racquetball, badminton and more. The second floor will be an indoor walking track, workout machines, ping-pong tables and pool tables.
Students will be able to check out equipment needed for the designated sport they would like to play. Students, faculty and staff will have access to the GAC via a card access system. The complete cost of the GAC renovation will be around $5 million and will tentatively be complete by August 2016.
“We want to try to enhance what we are doing on campus with the recreational space, academic study space and hangout space in the student center,” executive vice president David Collins said.
Collins has visited other schools including Abilene Christian University, Lubbock Christian University, Arkansas State University and University of Central Arkansas to brainstorm for the upcoming project.
Other updates that are in the works include updating the Brackett Library, increasing study space by 40 percent and also updating the student center to include a coffee shop environment.
