Construction winds down in Sturges Quad (picured above) as the fall semester begins. Final touches will include fall plantings and lampposts while the college will begin new projects (UdeshI Seneviratne/photo editor).
Construction work in the Sturges Quad approaches completion after a year of underground infrastructure work which was completed during the summer, according to Director of Facilities, Planning and Construction Michael Neiderbach.
“Most of what happened in the quad you don’t see, it’s underground,” Neiderbach said. “So we replaced all the main electrical feeds that ran under the quad, all the water lines, sewer lines, sanitary sewer lines, storm sewer lines, the steam line that feeds through the quad.”
The finishing touches of the project include trees and other fall plantings as well as new lamp posts, according to Neiderbach. Some of the delay in the construction process was due to funding issues and delays, Neiderbach said.
Issues in funding can sometimes complicate the process of strategizing for and moving projects along quicker, according to Assistant Vice President for Facilities and Planning George Stooks.
The next phase of the infrastructure project is currently underway near Blake Hall and is expected to come to completion towards the end of the fall semester, Neiderbach said.
Other small-scale projects continued over the summer as well, including updating the track storage building, replacing softball field dugouts and reopening Merritt Pool, according to Stooks.
“Everything we do, we try to focus on the student interest,” Stooks said. “In order to make progress, we have to have disruption.”
As Facilities Services completes the Sturges Quad infrastructure project, the college has begun planning for renovations within Sturges and Fraser Hall. The programming stage—planning what will be in the buildings—of the project has ended, moving the project into the schematic design stage, Neiderbach said.
“[The] Sturges Hall project is really going to be such a gem of a project,” Neiderbach said. “You see some of the other academic buildings on campus that have been renovated … everybody loves them. We’re really looking forward to the Sturges project.”
Some students expressed excitement for the future renovations, including biology major junior Esha Parikh.
“I think [the construction is] a really good idea because there’s just so many things that are outdated, from the heaters to the windows, so I think it’s a really good idea that they’re upgrading it,” Parikh said. “Especially because it’s so unfair that the science buildings are quite updated, but other academic halls aren’t.”
Facilities Services is also planning major window replacements for Southside residence halls and elevator repairs for Steuben and Allegany Hall, according to Neiderbach.
“Construction sometimes has some inconveniences associated with it and we appreciate everybody’s patience with that,” Neiderbach said. “It’s really to make the campus a better place for the long term … there’s some short-term inconveniences associated with these long-term improvements and we try to minimize the inconvenience … we do appreciate everybody working with us on that.”