Oxford Square Parking Garage Gets Its Design Team

“The construction of the garage will be the single biggest change to the Square in most, if not all, citizen’s memories.”
This is how City Engineer Bart Robinson describes the parking garage set to be constructed on the Oxford Square in the “Belk Lot” behind the University Club building.
Nine teams designed a proposal, and all were heard by the selection committee appointed by the mayor and the board of alderman on Monday. After hours of discussion and deliberation, a decision was made. Ely Guild Hardy Architects has been chosen to lead the design team and construct the downtown parking garage.  
Ely Guild Hardy Architects is no stranger to Oxford as the staff has headed up several projects around town. Oxford High School and the newest parking garage on the Ole Miss campus are prime examples of the work the company has put forth. 
“Obviously, I can’t get into the minds of the people on the selection committee.  However, I do believe the team’s familiarity with Oxford helps,” Robinson said. 
Ely Guild Hardy isn’t alone in the effort to get the garage design right. Hardy will serve as the primary architect along with Carl Walker, Inc. as the parking consultant/structural engineer, Precision Engineering as the civil engineer, Corbett Legge & Associates as the mechanical/electrical engineer and WAS Design as the landscape architect. 
Now that a design team has been chosen, the real work can begin. A contract will be put before the board of aldermen on May 2. Once the contract is agreed upon, the team will begin to reach out to citizens, the downtown parking committee, OUT Transit and the BOA to design the facility. 
Robinson noted that the city’s goal is to begin construction on the garage in January 2018. 

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Steven Gagliano is a writer for HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at steven.gagliano@hottytoddy.com. 
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