Auburn has always been considered a town for slow living. The town and University are tucked away between a major highway to the north and interstate to the south. You won’t find many that would even dare compare Auburn to big cities like Atlanta, only two hours away. That slow lifestyle can become hectic with football season right around the corner. But the normal days have become more busy, as well, especially during the summer. The over 100 construction projects planned for Auburn’s campus over the summer are partially to blame. There is so much going on on campus, so let’s take a look at some of the Auburn construction progress.

Mell Classroom Building

Let’s take a look at all the construction going on Auburn’s campus. Mell Classroom looks just about ready to open. Few details left. pic.twitter.com/QxJjJ8Xh0e — Clint Richardson® (@Clintau24) August 14, 2017



The project closest to completion is that of the new Mell Classroom Building. Located on the west side of the RBD Library, Mell will house 29 active learning classrooms, 40 group study rooms, and two lecture halls. A brand new Panera Bread shop will open in the 107,000 square foot building. Mell is nearly completed, with doors planned to open soon as the fall 2017 semester begins on August 21st.

Broun Hall

Broun Hall is having the front entrance renovated. Fall 2017 is very vague, especially with the work left to be done. pic.twitter.com/IeiXtYsHpX — Clint Richardson® (@Clintau24) August 14, 2017



Over on the Engineering side of campus, Broun Hall is getting a nice face-lift. The $5 million project will renovate the main entrance, revised lighting and finishes, as well as updated IT, mechanical, and electrical systems. New landscaping will also be added along the Ginn Concourse. Construction is set to finish around December, around the end of the semester.

Engineering Department

The old L Building is gone and the Textile Engineering Building is being renovated. New Engineering Student Center going in at this location pic.twitter.com/CAtJOKhL7O — Clint Richardson® (@Clintau24) August 14, 2017



Across the Concourse from Broun, the old L Building is completely demolished, and the Textile Building is being renovated. In place of the L Building, a new Brown-Kopel Engineering Student Achievement Center will be placed. The new Center will be three-stories and consist of classrooms, study spaces, and wind tunnel lab. Also meeting and departmental spaces for academic advising, tutoring, professional development, and industrial relations will be available. The nearly $40 million project is scheduled to be completed in April of 2019.

As for the Textile Building, renamed Gavin Engineering Research Lab in 2016, a complete gut job is in order. The $16.75 million project will renovate the building to provide space for many labs and organizations. Those include the Polymer Composites Center, additive manufacturing, aerospace engineering wind tunnels, nuclear power generation simulation, and pulp and paper pilot machine. General research assets from the Engineering Shops and L Building will also be relocated. The Auburn construction is slated to end in late April 2018.

Haley Center

The old coffee shop(?) in Haley has been replaced by Caribou and the return of Einstein Brothers Bagels. pic.twitter.com/LzYnFUySSQ — Clint Richardson® (@Clintau24) August 14, 2017



Caribou Coffee is no longer located in the RBD Library. The construction of the Mell Classroom Building and addition of Panera Bread has moved Caribou out to the Haley Center. The move also marks the return of Einstein Brothers Bagels, which has been absent from campus since 2012.

Plainsman Park

The Auburn baseball field is being renovated. Removing years of old dirt to start fresh. pic.twitter.com/E2a8R9YVWx — Clint Richardson® (@Clintau24) August 16, 2017



Hitchcock Field is getting a field makeover. Much like football fields, a baseball field gets filled with loads of natural compounds. The field needs to be replaced every now and then for multiple reasons. The big news with this is that turf grass will be installed. Don’t worry, it won’t be the entire field. The turf will simply cover the spaces outside of the foul lines – much like that of Jane B. Moore Field, that softball complex. Coach Butch Thompson has been requesting turf, according to rumors. Turf is reportedly better suited than grass in this area due to high traffic areas. Thompson’s last stop, Mississippi State, had turf in areas, including a small portion directly in front of home plate. That are of artificial grass was a big advantage for the Bulldogs, as the way the ball bounced was tricky for players lacking experience of the surface.

Jordan-Hare Stadium

Here’s a look at the locker room construction at JHS. pic.twitter.com/90kn93VPCr — Clint Richardson® (@Clintau24) August 16, 2017



It’s not new information that Jordan-Hare Stadium’s home lockers are being renovated. The school approved a $28 million budget to build new locker rooms, club space and press box. Construction began shortly after approval of the budget in late April. The building is scheduled to open in August 2018.

That’s fine and all, but the current status of the project is concerning. Portions of N. Donahue St have been closed due to the construction. The same holds true for Heisman Drive. With classes starting back soon, traffic in this area will increase tremendously. The area is rather tight as is, and messing with traffic flow will only further the issues on campus.

The biggest issues with this work is the effects of game day. As many know, Auburn’s cherished tradition of Tiger Walk begins at the corner of Samford Avenue and N. Donahue St and ends at the south endzone of Jordan-Hare. With the Auburn construction as is, and is expected to be in a few short weeks, the ending space of Tiger Walk will be a disaster. Many Auburn fans end up watching Tiger Walk closer to the Stadium, as it’s where the band and majority of people are. As of now, the final leg of Tiger Walk will be rerouted for the time being. I just hope they can clean up the area to be presentable and be respectable in time for 90,000 plus people to be on campus.

Compass Bank Building

In off campus news, the Compass Bank building, located at Toomer’s Corner beside Ware Jewelers and J&M Bookstore, will be demolished and rebuilt. The Auburn Villager article states that demolition could begin in November, with construction scheduled to last 18 months. Compass Bank will occupy the first and second floors, with the third floor consisting of three “luxury-type apartments.” Compass Bank and the family that owns the building agreed that renovating would be too difficult and costly. The better choice was to rebuild the building.

Compass Bank will relocate to the former Tiger Rags building on Gay Street during the duration of construction.

Auburn Baptist Campus Ministries

Also in Downtown Auburn construction news, the City of Auburn has purchased the building that currently houses the Baptist Campus Ministry. E2C Network fans will recognize this name, as the BCM is a proud and long-time sponsor of the Network. The BCM holds a lot of meaning to our team, as editor-in-chief Kyle Loomis, social media coordinator AJ Richardson, and No Huddle co-host Ben King all met at the BCM. Kyle also lived and worked at the BCM during his time as an Auburn University student.

No worries, as the BCM is not going away – just the building. The City purchased the facility for $2.33 million to place a 200-300 space parking deck. The BCM will occupy the first level of the deck in a 6,900 square foot facility. The BCM has traditionally had the entrance on College Street, but will soon be pushed backwards to face Wright Street. The new building will be smaller than the old – about 1,500 square feet smaller – but will be able to seat up to 75 more people.

The plan still needs to be approved, but demolition could begin soon after closing, in late November or early December. Completion of the project is currently slated for 2019. The City of Auburn has agreed to provide temporary housing for the BCM during construction, but no place has been determined yet.

Auburn construction has become normal around campus. Students even recite a new phrase of “Welcome to Construction, don’t mind the Auburn.” Auburn continues to grow, and while many don’t like the change, change continues to happen.

What do you think of these Auburn construction projects? Leave a comment below with your thoughts.

Featured image via Clint Richardson