Multiple Projects Underway At VMI
The crane towering over the Main Street side of Virginia Military Institute all summer has finally swung into action. And it’s not going away anytime soon.
The expansion of the Nichols Engineering Building is the most visible of several VMI construction projects currently in the works. Each is part of a capital improvement series announced in 2024 and slated to roll out over the next decade.
At the moment, there are five projects under construction and five more in the design phase. Each project takes about two years of design and another two to build, according to Lt. Col. Daren Payne, construction director in the VMI Office of Facilities Management, in an interview last week.
Payne and Keith Jarvis, VMI director of facilities management, will be presenting an update on the larger capital projects currently in the works to Lexington City Council in a work session today, Wednesday.
All projects aim to modernize the campus and provide cadets with world-class places to train and learn, an important aspect of appealing to new students.
“Prospective cadets and college students these days, they are really big on facilities,” Payne said. “We try to stay ahead of it by having those first-rate facilities, because it’s a big selling point for recruiting.”
THIS RENDERING shows what the addition to the Nichols Engineering building will look like once it is completed. It’s one of several construction projects ongoing on post as part of the latest capital improvement plan.
Below is a look at the projects taking place on post this summer.
Nichols Engineering Building Expansion
Work on the $75 million, 28,000-squarefoot expansion of the Nichols Engineering Building will last at least another year and a half, until about January 2029.
According to Payne, the structure will start to emerge much earlier. “By the time fall rolls around, you should start to see the building coming up out of the ground,” he said.
Workers have started using the massive blue crane, which is decked out in American and VMI flags, to lift construction materials aloft in the very narrow space next to the existing Nichols building.
“We have a very constricted site to work in … so you can’t bring a lot of large materials in there and store them on site,” Payne said. “You have to bring them in a truck and then pick them off the truck with the crane and put them right in the ground or right on the roof, wherever they need to go.”
The expansion will be seven stories high on the Main Street side, with only three stories visible from VMI’s Parade Grounds. Payne said there are no plans to shut down Main Street for more than a few minutes for trucks to pull in. He also emphasized that materials will never be swung over the road – so local drivers can take a deep breath.
The new section of the building will feature smart classrooms and expanded laboratory spaces to accommodate increased enrollment in the engineering department. The renovation will add at least eight new classrooms and more office space. Crews are also renovating some 63,000 feet of space inside the existing building. In the meantime, some offices and classes will be moved to other parts of the campus.
Moody Hall Expansion
Construction fencing has gone up ahead of the demolition and rebuild of Moody Hall, which has traditionally hosted alumni events. Fencing is also up around two nearby historic homes, Cabell and Neikirk, which will be demolished to make way for the new center for advancement.
Plans to tear down the two stately brick homes dating from 1870 and 1880 sparked strong opposition last year from many in the community, including members of the Lexington Architectural Review Board and Historic Lexington Foundation. They urged VMI to change its plans and asked if the houses might be relocated to somewhere else on post.
Ultimately, Payne said, the state Art and Architectural Review Board determined that the homes were not historically significant.
“There are a lot of other representations of that same historic architecture and construction methods in other places around Lexington, so it was determined that we could take those down without having any overly adverse effect on the historical character of the post,” Payne said.
At the moment, crews are working to remove furniture and any architectural features they can preserve from the homes, possibly for use on other parts of post. The houses will likely be demolished as early as September.
The rebuilt, 50,000-square-foot Moody Hall, set for completion in early 2029, will house all the alumni agencies, foundation offices, and a printing room for VMI publications. It will also feature a 700-seat dining and event space, conference rooms, a full-service commercial kitchen, and a terrace overlooking the Parade Grounds similar to the current one.
Payne said the space will be able to accommodate much larger groups and events like cadet job fairs, branch nights, banquets, guest lectures, awards ceremonies, and larger classes of alumni.
“When this original building was designed, a typical graduating class was about 150 to maybe 200,” he said. “Atypical incoming class … ideally is north of 500, so the existing building would accommodate a class of 100 people coming back for a reunion, but now we have potentially 300-plus coming back, plus family.”
Payne said the venue will be one of the largest of its type in the county.
New Barracks Windows And Security Upgrades
The three remaining projects happening on post are the installation of new windows in the barracks; security upgrades in the barracks that include new arch gates; and a post safety and security project consisting of all the barriers, gates and bollards that is 98% complete and will wrap up this fall.
The barracks’ facades have been shrouded in sheeting and scaffolding for months as the new windows and security upgrades are being installed. The work on the front side of the barracks will be completed before students start arriving on post for the new school year, Payne said.
Work on the back side of the buildings will start after the school year begins and end by next summer. Payne said some students will have to relocate for about six weeks during the window installation, which, he acknowledged, may cause some grumbles.
But like all the other projects in the works, he hopes it will be worth it in the end. “The students aren’t quite as happy about all the disruption, with all the work going on and construction zones,” Payne added. “But when the finished product arrives, they’re all very excited about it. It’s just those periods of time when we’re actually doing the work that there’s some discomfort.”
He also asked anyone who feels like the ongoing construction is a hassle try to remember that visiting crews are actually a boost to the local economy. “They stay in hotels and patronize the local bars and restaurants, so it brings a lot of money in.” he said. “I know it inconveniences some people, but it does bring in a lot of revenue, a lot of people, a lot of tourism for the whole community.”
Looking Ahead
In the years to come, several more projects are in the works, including a planned expansion of the Center for Leadership and Ethics and a new, adjacent parking garage.
On the athletics side, future projects include improvements for the baseball field and construction of a new soccer and lacrosse stadium that connects to the baseball stadium, as well as renovations to football and basketball locker rooms.
Payne said all the new buildings will maintain the historic characteristic of the existing campus and must be approved by the state Art and Architecture Review Board.
CONSTRUCTION FENCING is now up around the historic Cabell and Neikirk homes, as well as around Moody Hall on VMI’s campus, ahead of demolition of all three buildings. (Allie Goolrick photo)
