Lamp Staff Provides Holiday Gifts to Two Families

,

Gallup’s recent poll reveals the average American family plans to spend $908 on Christmas gifts this year. While most relish in the holiday spirit, there are many who dread the cheer and festivities. In Elgin and specifically in Lamp Inc’s immediate neighborhood, the poverty rate is upwards of 60%. Holiday presents are a luxury many of our neighbors just cannot afford. That’s when it hit us; the staff at Lamp decided to take this opportunity and make the holidays bright for several local families in Elgin.

In partnership with the Boys & Girls Club of Elgin, our staff adopted two families who were struggling significantly this holiday. In total, 17 people will receive a gift this holiday, plus each family will receive a $250 Jewel gift card to cover grocery costs. This spirit of giving really united our team and so we decided not to stop there—an additional 20 families will also receive $100 Jewel gift cards so that they too can enjoy a holiday meal.

We’re tremendously proud of our staff and owe them a big THANK YOU for rallying around people in need in our community.

This holiday, we encourage you to share the giving feeling . Contact the Boys & Girls Club of Elgin to see how you can help!

/by

Lamp Incorporated Announces Ian Lamp as New President and Other Staff Changes

,

LEED Certification is a relatively new construction term. While most people have heard of LEED, especially in the construction industry, it’s worth reviewing the basics, since it is redefining the way we think about the places we live, work and learn. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. As an internationally recognized mark of excellence, LEED provides building owners and operators with a framework for identifying and implementing practical and measurable green building design, construction, operations and maintenance solutions.

While “Green” can be thrown around, “LEED Certified” cannot. LEED certification provides independent, third-party verification that the buildings we construct are built using strategies aimed at achieving high performance in key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality. For a building to achieve LEED certification, a number of important items must be satisfied, and the building must earn points that assign it to a level of certification.

Check out this video explaining LEED certification:

We have worked to achieve LEED certification on a number of buildings, including the Elgin Community College Health and Career Center, Fox River Valley Water Reclamation District, the FRWRD Administration Building, and many more. We are familiar with and enjoy working to achieve LEED certification on projects where that is a client’s goal.

At Lamp, we believe building green is an opportunity for us to use our resources efficiently and effectively while creating healthier buildings. We use green building practices in order to provide clients financial savings, improved employee health and productivity, and resource efficiency. A few green building practices we employ include:

  • Recycling practices to reduce waste deposited into landfills by utilizing separate dumpsters for cardboard/paper, metal, concrete/masonry, and wood from construction debris
  • Indoor Air Quality Management program
  • Waste Management program

Contact us to learn more about how we can work with you achieve LEED Certification on your next project.

/by

Proud Sponsor of the Boys & Girls Club of Elgin’s Great Futures Gala

,

This weekend, Lamp Inc. will be a proud sponsor of the “Great Futures Gala” hosted by the Boys & Girls Club of Elgin. The gala will be held this Friday, October 16th at the Stonegate Conference and Banquet Center. Tickets and opportunities to volunteer are still available at the Boys & Girls Club of Elgin website.

Help us in supporting this great event and the future of our young community members.

Boys and Girls Gala

/by

Join Us for the 100th Annual Elgin Open!

As we leave the summer behind and move into fall, we can’t help but get a few more rounds of golf in before winter hits us. With that in mind, we are proud and honored to be the host of the centennial edition of this year’s Annual Elgin Open.

The 100th Annual Open will open with nine holes on September 26th at Wing Park and eighteen holes on September 27th at The Highlands of Elgin. These rounds act as a qualifier for the flighting to the field. The final rounds will be on October 3rd and 4th at Bowes Creek.

We are pleased to support this tradition dating back to 1910 when E.W. Wing won the title. For more information on the event and to hear thoughts on the event from some esteemed Elginites, read the full article from Elgin Courier-News.

To apply as a participant in the open, download the form here, and mail it to The Highlands (875 Sports Way) or Bowes Creek (1250 Bowes Creek Blvd.) in Elgin, Illinois before September 16. The application deadline is September 18 at 5:00pm.

/by

Lamp Selected to Manage Fox River Grove Public Works Facility

,

We are pleased to announce that we will be the Construction Manager for the new Fox River Grove Public Works facility, working with Batavia-based architects Kluber Architect +Engineers, Inc. The facility will be 11,000 square feet, and plans include an all-brick building to keep regular maintenance costs down over time.

The building is expected to cost between $2.7 and $2.9 million. It will be located between Hillcrest and Lincoln avenues across from the existing wastewater treatment plant. Some features of the site plan include:

  • An entrance vestibule
  • Administration section
  • Staff work space
  • A conference room area
  • Four pull-through apparatus bays will offer easy in-and-out access for public works vehicles

The site plan for the project was approved at the Village Board meeting in July. Currently the project is in the design phase, with the Village Board holding meetings to discuss design layouts and to allow residents to learn more about the facility. Learn more in the Northwest Herald.

We are excited to be managing the construction of this project, and we look forward to sharing the progress as we go!

Join our eList to stay informed about our ongoing and upcoming work, and exciting area construction news.

/by

Johnsburg School District 12 Reviews Facility Plan

, ,

Written by Jeff Engelhardt, Northwest Herald. February 10, 2015

http://www.nwherald.com/2015/02/09/johnsburg-school-district-12-board-reviews-41m-facility-plan/abbzwde/

Johnsburg School District 12 Board reviews $41M facility plan

JOHNSBURG – Johnsburg School District 12 officials are close to initiating the bidding process for a $41 million facility project years in the making.

After numerous community informational sessions and presentations of preliminary designs, board members are now in the final stages before taking the project to bid.

Board members reviewed at Tuesday’s meeting the roughly $41 million project that will incorporate third- and fourth-grade classrooms in the the junior high building and expand the high school.

“I think the board still has questions and are still clarifying things, so nothing is set yet,” Superintendent Dan Johnson said. “But the plans and the information has been very well received.”

The junior high renovations carry the larger price tag of $20.6 million as James C. Bush Elementary School is set to close and merge with the junior high to create a building that houses third through eighth grades.

More than 20 new classrooms could be constructed, with the majority being housed in an expansion on the northwest side of the building.

Dedicated cafeterias for third through fifth grades and sixth through eighth grades would be housed in the center of the building, where an expanded gym also would be built for sixth through eighth grades.

Additional classrooms for the junior high grades will be built on the east end of the building.

Johnson said no decisions have been made on the future of the Bush Elementary building.

High school renovations are projected to cost $18.8 million with the majority of improvements occurring in the gymnasium that will be expanded and the front entrance that will have a new secured vestibule. There are no such security features presently at the high school.

The designs also include anywhere from six to 12 classrooms depending on the cost and improvements for the art programs, including a revamped backstage area in the auditorium and a workshop to build sets.

Board President Thomas Low said the steering committees, which included staff and community members, did a great job guiding a design process that has been well received across the board.

Low said he doesn’t expect any major changes to the design and the features that are ultimately incorporated will depend on the bids they receive.

“We’re wanting to get the best bang for our buck,” Low said. “We’ll go out to bid and at that point we’ll see what it will cost and then we could have to taper down or scale back some things.”

Construction could start in the summer with full completion of the project targeted for the beginning of the 2016-17 school year.

/by

Workers Moving into New District 300 Office

, ,

Written by Suzanne Baker, The Courier News. January 15, 2015

http://couriernews.chicagotribune.com/2015/01/15/last-workers-move-new-district-300-offices/

Last workers move into new District 300 offices

Chuck Bumbales is beaming these days, and he’ll be even happier in a little more than a week.

Community School District 300’s assistant superintendent of operations watched the last group of employees move into the new District 300 Central Office building this week. More than 100 district-level employees now work at the administration building at 2550 Harnish Drive in Algonquin.

“It was great to get the last people in here yesterday,” Bumbales said Tuesday morning while giving a tour to show off the office space.

At 28,000 square feet, the new building brings together the administrative staff, business office, information technology, student services, human resources and curriculum development under one roof.

Because the former Central Office building next to Carpentersville Middle School was only 15,000 square feet, some of the district-level staff were scattered around the district in another 5,000 square feet of office space. “My goodness, we were everywhere,” Bumbales said.

Now rather than video conference or spend time driving across the district, people in multiple departments can meet in an office or conference room down the hall. As a result, Bumbales expects better communication.

“The personal touch or in-person touch will improve communication,” he said.

A few last-minute details have to be made before the building will be ready for Bumbales’ biggest showing ever: the Jan. 26 School Board meeting.

A couple of metal nameplates, clocks and video monitors still need to be installed. Furniture to fill first-floor conference rooms and the chairs and tables for Board of Education meeting room are scheduled to be moved in this week.

District 300 already is accepting reservations from staff for use of two conference rooms and training room on the main floor and two conference rooms on the second floor.

The district also has room to grow. “In the past, we’ve moved into something and we were at capacity immediately,” Bumbales said.

A carpeted, 3,000-square-foot room is available on the second floor. “We really haven’t work through its purpose right now,” he said.

Bumbales said it’s been suggested the room could be used for small concerts, a meeting room for the community, or used down the road as offices.

While the district had to buy some additional furniture to fill the added number of conference rooms, staff cafeteria and a few cubicles, the majority of the office furnishings are the same desks, tables, chairs and cubicles used by the staff.

What proved most amazing is how the old furniture appears in the new digs.

“It’s the same things, but they don’t look the same,” Bumbales said. He said perhaps it’s the color choices for the walls, the larger size or configuration of the rooms, the light from all the windows or a combination.

“We brought in a lot of natural light,” he said. “The biggest comment from people is that they just love the natural light.”

/by

District 300 Unveils New Administration Building

, ,

Written by Stephen Di Benedetto, Northwest Herald. January 14, 2015

http://www.nwherald.com/2015/01/14/algonquin-school-district-300-unveils-new-administration-building/a2ou5oc/

Algonquin School District 300 unveils new administration building

ALGONQUIN – The newly opened $3.9 million administration building gives administrators from Algonquin-based School District 300 a centralized location that is nearly twice the size of their old office in Carpentersville.

The different administrative departments from District 300 also will be housed together at the same location for the first time – the primary motive behind officials’ decision to build the two-story, 28,000-square-foot building, said Chuck Bumbales, assistant superintendent of operations.

“The goal is better communication amongst all of our departments,” Bumbales said. “We are really hoping that in-person touch is really going to improve communication.”

But for parents and students, the majority of the building at 2550 Harnish Drive, Algonquin, will be off-limits, excluding the new district board room. Located near the main lobby, the larger meeting area can fit between 30 to 40 additional people.

It features four 70-inch TVs that add a visual component to board presentations and includes a raised seating area for board members. It’s a larger, more flexible space for the community than the board’s former meeting location at Westfield Community School, Bumbales said.

As staffers were settling into their new office and waiting for the final pieces of furniture to arrive, Bumbales showcased the new board room, five conference rooms and various office spaces during a media tour earlier this week.

The nine-month construction project forced administrators in the spring to move from Carpentersville to Hampshire, before they permanently relocated to Algonquin last week.

The project coincided with a $1.17 million renovation to the former Central Office in Carpentersville. The renovation converted the office into classrooms for the district’s alternative Oak Ridge School.

Officials should complete the move into the new Central Office by the end of January, Bumbales said.

“Everything operates – the phones, the Internet, the security systems, the fire system,” he said. “It’s really now about the final move-in touches that will really make the place become home.”

/by

Huntley High School Expansion Phase II – First Electric Newspaper

, ,

Written By Staff at First Electric Newspaper. January 2, 2015

http://www.firstelectricnewspaper.com/2015/01/hhs-further-expansion-waits-for-thaw.html

HHS Further Expansion Waits For Thaw, Summer Break

Huntley High School students returning from Winter Break Monday will find themselves greeted with a new HHS main entrance sign meant to reinforce a “Red Raiders” identity.  Bolted up during the break, the new sign marks a milestone in District 158’s HHS expansion to handle another 1,000 students.

Most of the Phase I remodeling work’s finished, according to D158’s Operations and Maintenance Director Doug Renkosik  including revamping the main entrance for better security and repurposing four instruction areas including the school’s weight room.  Parking changes and a student entrance to the Harmony Road campus are finished and work’s approaching the halfway point on the new Huntley High Field House.

Phase II construction’s due to begin this Spring (“just as soon as the ground thaws”) for a classroom addition on the high school’s west end with interior work on a larger cafeteria, multiple common areas, and a redesigned library scheduled to start as soon as the Summer Break.  “It’s going to be a very busy Summer,” said Renkosik.

The entire project is being funded by a $39 million construction grant from the State that had originally been planned to pay for the District’s Square Barn Campus almost 10 years ago.

/by

Anderson Animal Shelter Reveals Renovations – Daily Herald

,

Written By Brian Hill, Daily Herald. November 22, 2014

http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20141122/news/141129405/

South Elgin animal shelter unveils renovations

Anderson Animal Shelter reopened Saturday following a comprehensive remodeling which began about three months ago.

Changes include new caging for dogs and cats, new flooring throughout the shelter, new plumbing and a new logo and website.

“This was a huge undertaking,” Executive Director Beth Drake said before the grand reopening, “but we couldn’t be happier. The shelter looks absolutely amazing, and the changes in the animals are all positive. They are calmer (and quieter) in their new cages. It will really make a difference in their overall health and adoptability.”

“It’s a completely different building and it’s awesome.” said volunteer Barb Hannan of Elgin, who was working with the cats in their new living space. “It’s much better for everyone.”

In addition to the shelter redesign, Anderson has also undergone a change in animal housing philosophy with many of the animals moved to foster homes to reduce the population at the shelter. With fewer animals to care for, shelter staff can focus on the individual needs of each animal.

“This means that our animals are emotionally and physically healthier, and this has had a positive impact on our adoptions,” Drake said, nothing that since the policy change in June adoption rates have increased 40 percent.

For more information on the shelter, call (847) 697-2880.

/by