LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Nov. 29, 2007)--Groundbreaking ceremonies for Bellarmine University’s newest residence hall, “Siena Secondo,” were held on campus today. Bellarmine President Dr. Joseph J. McGowan was joined by Bellarmine students and administrators to take the first shovels full of dirt at the ceremony between Bonaventure and Newman halls.
The $8.8 million Siena Secondo will encompass 40,382 square feet and accommodate 146 residents. Architects for the project are Godsey Associates Architects and the general contractor is F.W. Owens Company. Construction is expected to take about one year and the building is expected to open for the spring 2009 semester.
As part of Bellarmine’s Vision2020, campus planners are working with a Tuscan theme to pay homage to Bellarmine’s namesake St. Robert Bellarmine, who was born and raised in Tuscany. Siena Secondo is so named because it is phase two of the Siena housing project at Bellarmine. The first phase of the project, Siena Primo, opened this fall. The “primo” and “secondo” names come from Italian for first and second. Siena, of course, is a city in the Tuscan region of Italy.