Pro Con installs boards and glass at Bowdoin's 68,200 s/f ice arena

The dasher boards and the protective glass panels are being installed at Watson Arena, a new 68,200 s/f ice arena on the campus of Bowdoin College. Pro Con Inc. is the construction manager for the $20 million project and Bear Mountain Design AC, Ltd. of Vermont is the project architect. The new arena will feature a 90-foot by 200-foot ice surface and will have a seating capacity for 1,900 and standing room capacity around the concourse for an additional 600. Both the main concourse area and interior seating will provide great views of the action on the ice. The state-of-the-art arena has exposed steel trusses, masonry columns and wood accents through the facility. The project includes large locker rooms with generous space for changing, equipment storage and athletic training areas. The site plan calls for a 360-space parking lot. The stadium seating, scoreboard, and interior lighting have been installed and the protective glass is currently being placed along the rink The rink is in the final stages of construction. Bowdoin plans to officially open the Watson Arena on January 18, 2009 with a men's and women's doubleheader. The environmentally friendly arena will have a very energy efficient refrigeration system and de-humidification system and will utilize recycled water. Throughout the project, Pro Con and Bowdoin have maintained a strong commitment to the environment and anticipate the Watson Arena to be LEED certified after completion. In addition to coordination with the design team to ensure the optimum amount of LEED points are achieved, Pro Con Inc worked with subcontractors and suppliers to ensure that as many products as possible contained a high recycled content, were manufactured or extracted regionally, and contained minimal amounts of Volatile Organic Compounds. Pro Con also ensured that all wood products utilized during construction were urea-formaldehyde free and Forest Stewardship Council Certified. To minimize construction waste, Pro Con and Bowdoin introduced a comprehensive waste management program which has resulted in almost ninety percent of construction waste being diverted from disposal. Pro Con began site work for the project in September 2007 and the project is expected to be completed in December 2008. The Watson Arena is one of several ice arenas Pro Con Inc has recently managed including a 65,000 s/f ice arena complex at St Paul's School in Concord, N.H. and a 59,000 s/f ice arena at Phillips Academy in Andover, Mass. Bowdoin is an independent, nonsectarian, coeducational residential, undergraduate liberal arts institution founded in 1794. It is located in Brunswick, Maine, a town of 21,000 on the Maine coast. Bowdoin enrolls approximately 1,710 students from across the country and around the world. More than 120 buildings are a part of the approximately 215-acre Bowdoin campus. Pro Con Inc. is a comprehensive design and construction management firm specializing in all levels of corporate, commercial, industrial, institutional and multi-family residential projects. Founded in 1935, the company serves clients throughout New England and the Northeast and is recognized as being a leader in the industry.