September 22, 2005
Colorado Law students, faculty, staff and alumni celebrated the topping out of the new $46 million Wolf Law Building, Sept. 22, at 10:30 a.m., with a ceremonial signing of the last beam to be placed on top of the structure.
The 178,000 square foot building, constructed in the neo-Tuscan style that marks the architecture of the CU-Boulder campus, is scheduled for completion June 2006.
The building is named for the late Leon and Dora Wolf, parents of Marvin, Melvin and Erving Wolf, who, with their spouses, were the lead donors.
The building is unique in several ways. It was financed largely by student fees and it is being built to meet environmentally friendly “green building” standards.
Two years ago the Law School was close to losing accreditation due to the Fleming Law Building's poor condition. But last year the University of Colorado Student Union stepped in and approved a bill to assess all full-time students a fee to retire $21 million in bonds that is helping to finance construction of the school.
The building is believed to be the only public building at a major public research university in the United States to be financed largely through student fees.
“This is a new high for the law school, literally and figuratively,” said Dean David Getches. “It is tangible evidence of what we are achieving through the generosity of our private supporters and of the students at the University Colorado.”
The “green building” standards require that 100 percent of the electricity for the new buildings come from renewable resources, making CU-Boulder’s building requirements some of the most environmentally sound in the country.
Speakers at the ceremony included University of Colorado President Hank Brown, Dean David Getches, and CU Law student Brian Mason, one of several students responsible for drafting the student government legislation to pay for the funding.
The school still needs to raise $2.1 million by the time the building is completed.
The finished building will have 18 classrooms and about 75 offices spread over five floors in an L-shaped structure. It will feature a 250-seat courtroom for visiting courts and student mock court uses. The Fleming Law Building, built in 1957, was expected to accommodate up to 250 law students. Enrollment is now over 500 students.
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| Kirsten Dueck, Director of Alumni and Communications with the Wolfs |
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| Dean David Getches Announces Wittemyer Gift at the Topping-Out Ceremony |
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| Brian Mason, President of SBA |
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| Marvin and Judy Wolf Watch the Topping Out |
