Ground floor of Iowa Memorial Union to re-open to students, public
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Written by: Anne Bassett

WHAT: For the first time since it was immersed in floodwater seven years ago, the University of Iowa Memorial Union ground floor will be open to the public. University and local officials will commemorate the re-opening of the 83,000-square-foot space with a ribbon-cutting ceremony followed by self-guided tours and a reception.

The re-opening of the important student gathering space comes as the UI begins hosting orientation programming for more than 4,000 perspective students in June and July.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency “flood mitigation and recovery project” restored the ground floor of the IMU to the same function and design as it was in June 2008. It also focused on flood mitigation efforts to raise the area next to the river two feet above the 500-year flood level. The construction cost for the project is $21.6 million.

The new River Terrace, the area created by the flood wall installation overlooking the Iowa River and IMU Amphitheater, will open Aug. 1.

WHEN: 10 a.m., Wednesday, June 3 

WHERE: Iowa Memorial Union, North Entrance
                  125 N. Madison St., Iowa City

BACKGROUND: The re-opening of the IMU ground floor is another milestone in the UI’s efforts to recover from the flood of June 2008.

The natural disaster affected more than 2.5 million square feet of building space—or one-sixth of the UI campus—forced the evacuation and closing of 20 buildings, and resulted in $743 million in damage and recovery costs.

Currently, there are only three major construction projects affiliated with recovery efforts left to complete. The Art Building replacement, Voxman Music Building, and Hancher Auditorium replacement are all set to open in 2016.  

IMU FLOOD MITIGATION AND RECOVERY PROJECT FACTS:

Start date: October 2013 
Completion date: June 2015
Construction cost: $21.6 Million
Design professional: Rohrbach Associates PC
General contractor: Miron Construction Co. Inc.

Ground floor features:

  • Learning Commons
  • Hills Bank – campus location
  • Iowa Hawk Shop/Book Store
  • Union Station Food Court
  • The Hawkeye Room student lounge and performance venue
  • Convenience store
  • Coffee shop
  • TV lounge and study area

Number of bricks used: 78,900
Concrete used: 3,000 cubic yards in flood walls and miscellaneous patches around the entire project
Sheets of sheetrock used: 2,957