DPR Raleigh-Durham Leverages Skills-Based Volunteering for New Boys & Girls Club

In a year of unprecedented upheaval, we continue to see reasons for hope as people rise to the challenge of helping others in their communities. DPR Construction has a long history of embracing Community Initiatives (CI), evidenced recently by DPR Raleigh-Durham’s undertaking of a CI project for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina to help start up a new Club location in Pittsboro, N.C.

DPR, a self-performing general contractor, is exercising skills-based volunteering by leveraging its expertise as a technical builder to support this project.

With renovations to an existing 2,700-square-foot building scheduled to get underway this spring, DPR is now well into preconstruction on this future Boys & Girls Club location. No stranger to virtual design and construction (VDC), DPR used laser scanning to capture existing conditions of the interior and exterior of the building, including grades, to evaluate accessibility and potential expansion of the building.

Kyle Shipp, a senior MEP coordinator and smart buildings lead for DPR, was first introduced to the idea of establishing a Boys & Girls Club in Pittsboro while serving on the Town Board of Commissioners.

“Once I was aware of the Pittsboro community’s desire to have a local Boys & Girls Club, I knew this project would align perfectly with what DPR has to offer its nonprofit organizations,” said Shipp.

“Working alongside a local architect, Hobbs Architects, DPR used preconstruction to support the project’s planning efforts for developing costing alternatives and to manage the permitting,” said Shipp.

DPR field tech engineer Gabriel Osuna provided the laser scan data to the local architect team for their use in design, while simultaneously giving them the opportunity to become more familiar with technology like laser scanning and resultant point clouds.

Paul Drake from Hobbs Architects noted how VDC was helping the team.

“DPR provided us with very detailed 3D scans of the building, allowing us to verify building measurements and grade elevations to complete a feasibility study for the Boys & Girls Club,” said Drake.

In the coming months, DPR will continue to support these renovation efforts to quickly move the Boys & Girls Clubs into their new facility to begin offering their dynamic programs and services to Pittsboro youth.

“Boys & Girls Clubs are, above all else, safe places for all children to learn, grow and play. In order to fully realize that mission, our building spaces must be designed with that in mind,” said CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina, Daniel K. Simmons. “The cutting-edge assessment and design work currently underway for the Pittsboro Boys & Girls Club will ensure that the club is both welcoming and accessible to any child who wishes to attend from day one.”

Now leading the Advisory Board for the new Club as work progresses, Shipp is excited for what this new Boys & Girls Club location will provide Pittsboro youth for years to come.

“We have a really great group of people who are working hard on starting this club. It’s been an exciting and rewarding experience to be involved with a community initiative project like this from the very beginning,” shared Shipp.

This article originally appeared on the “Across DPR Blog,” Jan. 29, 2021.