Pamperin Hall dedicated to UW-Green Bay alumnus

Students returning this year will no longer be greeted with the sound of pounding hammers and screeching saws that flooded the air last spring. That's because those sounds of labor are finally finished with the completion of the new Keith Pamperin Hall.

The three story, 52,000 square-foot building is the newest building to the UW-Green Bay campus.

The building will house 126 students in 32 suites. The suites will be fully furnished with living rooms and kitchens as well as private bathrooms and bedrooms.

The new apartment-style residence hall also provides the residents with central air conditioning, laundry, vending machines, cable television and high-speed Internet access.

The building was constructed by Deleers with a budget of $8.5 million.  

"I think it's a tremendous facility," said Glenn Gray, director of residence life. "It's truly a state-of-the-art facility. It's a real quality building and with the private bedrooms, private bathrooms, the quality of the construction and the quality of the furnishings that have been put into the building, I think the students are just going to love it."

The project began July 2009 and was finished August 2010.

"This was an extremely ambitious timeline for completing the design process, site development, construction, furnishing, etc," said Glenn Gray, Director of Residence Life. "Thanks to the cooperation of Mother Nature, I would venture to guess this was the fastest a residence hall has ever been built on a university campus in Wisconsin."

The new hall is named after Keith A. Pamperin, a 1970 UWGB graduate with a bachelor's degree in urban analysis. Pamperin originally went to school in Milwaukee, but he was involved in a motor scooter accident, which left Pamperin with a permanent disability. Pamperin then moved in with his parents and he began attending classes at UWGB. Pamperin served 38 years for Green Bay and Brown County Housing Authorities. Currently, Pamperin serves on many boards, including the university housing board.

The new building has many unique features. The Keith Pamperin Hall is the only residence hall on campus with central air. Each room has its own thermostat, which doesn't affect any other room.  Another unique feature is a lounge area on every level. Each lounge area is furnished with couches, tables and flat-screen televisions. Gray explained these areas were created to encourage students to leave their rooms and meet others living in the building and to develop a sense of community.  

 "I love how right outside our apartment is a spacious lounge area with floor to ceiling glass windows along the wall and a large flat screen TV," says Amber Drephal, a junior human development major.  

Pamperin Hall will also accommodate students with every need. Along with many other accommodations, special sensors are placed in rooms for students with disabilities.

"I think this building is very accessible," Gray said to Alumni Rising. "Just about every room in the building is accessible for students with disabilities. I think that makes it very special for Keith having a disability of his own."

When building the new dormitory, every effort was made to recycle as much building material as possible. Pamperin Hall is the only residence hall on campus that has a metal framework instead of traditional wood. The dormitory was also built with energy efficient lighting as well as low-flow plumbing. All of the appliances are energy efficient as well.  

"KP just offers a much more comfortable atmosphere," Drephal said. "Plus being the closest building to the Union and academic buildings is really convenient."

 Gray believes the atmosphere of the building will also increase student interest in this building and encourage more students to live on campus.

"About 40 percent of the student body currently lives on campus, and we anticipate that their satisfaction with this building will enhance their desire to want to stay," Gray said.

The building was officially dedicated to Keith Pamperin Sept. 8