Living the Good (Remediated) Life at Carroll University

They may not realize it, but a group of Carroll University undergraduate students is living in popular new residence halls with a curious back story.

Ayres environmental engineer Lynn Scherbert knows the story well: She managed the project that transformed a once-blighted, vacant industrial area of Waukesha, Wisconsin, into a thriving student housing complex. The area is now home to Pioneer, Frontier (pictured above), and Prairie halls and an array of retail outlets.

“Carroll University’s student living complex has brought new life into an area that was in desperate need of clean-up,” Lynn says. “In addition to increasing on-campus living options, the redevelopment project has also decreased local crime rates and improved health and safety. It was rewarding to work on a project that made so much of an impact.”

Lynn has been working on environmental projects for the housing redevelopment since 2008, assisting with grant applications and helping to seek government funding for the work, providing environmental site assessments, offering remediation oversight, and completing remedial action plans for the parcels.

More than 12,000 tons of contaminated soil was removed in the area Frontier Hall now occupies, and about 10,000 tons of soil was removed before constructing Prairie Hall. (Ayres was not involved in the redevelopment work associated with the first building, Pioneer Hall.) The photo at right shows what the site looked like before redevelopment.

Ayres helped secure more than $760,000 in site assessment and redevelopment grants, paving the way for the striking redevelopment.

Despite tight timetables, the three-phase project was completed on time and within budget. The halls were “move-in ready” for the start of the fall 2013 semester.

“The new residence halls continue to be a hit with the students,” says Ronald Lostetter, Carroll University’s vice president of finance and administrative services. “The newness is still there, and the apartment-style layouts are meeting and exceeding the students’ expectations. The new halls also are used heavily in the summer by our various camp participants. Overall, they are used year-round and are a wonderful asset to Carroll University.”

Click here for an article about the project from our TRENDS magazine.