Gilbane’s Los Angeles Team to the Rescue
With water damage to walls, ceilings, floors, equipment, and computers, the building was in need of significant repairs and restoration. Our Los Angeles team jumped at the opportunity to help restore this vital section of campus. We needed to act quickly and skillfully to address the unique challenges of the project. As an unplanned and untimely event, the CalArts Facilities and Planning team was in unchartered territory. Our goal was to provide guidance and proactive solutions as seamlessly as possible to minimize further chaos on campus.
Mitigating Impact on an Active Campus
One of our first goals was to minimize disruptions to students and faculty on the active campus. The building was occupied during the renovations, and Gilbane took care to reduce disruptions to ongoing teaching and learning activities. Our team coordinated closely with the facilities management department, keeping lines of communication open and transparent. Safety was paramount, as much of the work was in a high pedestrian traffic area. We also managed trade contractors with consideration for the collegial environment and remained sensitive to the needs of the CalArts community.
“The entire Gilbane group served as true partners to CalArts in rebuilding this important section of our campus. The above-and-beyond support I received separated Gilbane from other contractors. Their superior dedication to the preconstruction process and excellent communication made the transition from remediation to construction seamless and mitigated many potential risks” said Lori Husein, Sr. Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of CalArts.
Former AVP of Capital Facilities and Planning for CalArts, Sarah Mathov, said, “Kelvin Sam, Joshua Hung, Eliu Sarabia, have all been very instrumental in our project. They’re
responsive and helpful with questions and quick to address any concerns. The team is highly collaborative in discussing change orders and any changes to costs. Working within challenging time constraints, the team has been excellent at reporting schedule impacts or other potential challenges. The team is very responsive with all requests with a high emphasis on communication.”
This special team was rounded out with hands-on support from the talented design team at HGA, as well as the CalArts project team and facilities management team. We are #GilbaneProud to be a part of restoring this important and celebrated space into a state-of-the-art facility.
