Engineering-Physics Building, 1958
From CSU's Sense of Place: A Campus History of Colorado's Land-Grant University, by James E. Hansen, Gordon A. Hazard, and Linda M. Meyer. Fort Collins, CO: Colorado State University, 2018.
Architects – James M. Hunter and Associates (original), William George Heinzmand and Charles S. Ingalls, Jr. (1967 Math Wing addition), William C. Muchow & Associates, Inc. of Denver, H+L Architecture of Denver (1999 renovation)
Builder - Weaver Construction Company (original), Hensel - Construction Company (1999 renovation)
400 Isotope Drive
The “Post-World War II Era” that evolved quickly into the “Cold-war Era” had America crying out for more trained engineers in all fields. James M. Hunter was hired to design this answer to Colorado A & M College’s need for more space to teach Engineering and Physics courses. On June 22, 1956, the Weaver Construction Company won the bid and construction began that summer. The fall quarter of 1957 saw the institution with a new name and identity as it opened its new Engineering-Physics Building. Colorado State University entered a new age.
The 60,000 square-foot building consisted of four wings and an auditorium connected by a long first-floor hallway. During that fall quarter of 1957, classes started as workmen still worked each day to complete the final construction details. The original complex provided facilities not only for the various disciplines of Engineering, but for several related departments such as Physics, Mathematics, and the rapidly emerging studies of Computer Science. The Engineering Auditorium located in the A-wing of the building, was said to be the first tiered lecture hall built on the campus. From 1957 until 1966 the enclosed hallway extended to the west that connected the Auditorium wing with the main building of the old Hydraulics Laboratory.
The Physics-wing (D-wing) had a “blister” room built onto the east wall to house the first nuclear reactor installed in any Colorado school. Funding for this reactor came from the $100,000 granted by the Atomic Energy Commission. Beginning in the fall quarter of 1958, Nuclear Engineering was offered as part of the Department of Mechanical Engineering’s program offering.
Over the years this building has undergone renovations and additions. The architectural team of William George Heinzmand and Charles Stahl Ingalls, Jr. were hired to design the first addition, a new Math Wing (E-wing), which opened in early 1967. This addition was built onto the east end of the original complex and housed the University Computer Center in its basement. This was the center of all computer operations until the advent of personal computers quickly made the operation of one big computer center obsolete. In 1979, William C. Muchow & Associates, Inc. of Denver designed an enclosed second-floor arcade that was added to the building to provide additional office space and to connect the building with the Lory Student Center. The bridge with the Student Center’s top floor allowed access to the second-floor of the Engineering Building via the new arcade hallway.
Planning for an $18.8 million remodeling and enlarging project was started in June 1995. Construction was finished in July 1999. This four-year project designed by H+L Architecture of Denver, gave major upgrades and additions to the 40-year-old complex. Architects George Haller, Dayl Larson, and Jeffrey Ambrose of Haller & Larson were involved with the design work while the Hensel Phelps Construction Company was the builder. The modernized building, along with its showcase Foucault pendulum, was formally dedicated on October 13, 2000. Isotope Drive was now a plaza.
In June 2009, an 18.9 kW solar array that produces over 25,000 kWh each year was installed on the roof of the building and tied in with the existing electrical system. The array is made up of 108 panels.
Sources by Gordon A. Hazard
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