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August 30, 2002
Construction,
Construction, and More Construction
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Photo: Fred LeBlanc
In
July, a vacant Blanchard Campus Center awaited its new look.
The building's renovation and expansion is expected to be
complete by fall 2003.
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For those who remained
on campus over the summer, the watchwords were patience and ingenuity.
When walking from one part of the campus to another—or in
some cases from one floor of a building to the next—pedestrians
encountered changes every day. Drivers also found that their favorite
thoroughfares had been altered and that a parking lot would be
there one day and gone the next.
In addition to work
on roads and major construction projects, summer construction
on campus included the renovation of a number of administrative
offices, with staff either packing up and moving to temporary
quarters or investing in earplugs. Fortunately for those working
in Mary Woolley Hall, where the development office underwent a
major facelift, interspersed with the jarring noise of jackhammers
and power tools were the soothing sounds of musicians rehearsing
for Musicorda concerts.
Says John Bryant,
director of facilities management, “While there were inconveniences
caused by construction over the summer, the improvements that
will result from this work far outweigh any hardship we are experiencing
now. With the fall opening of Kendade Hall, a state-of-the-art,
magnificent facility, and the wonderful results achieved in the
art and music projects, the community should be developing a sense
that the 'suffering' will be worth it in the end."
Light at the End
of the Tunnel: Kendade Hall and the Science Center
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Photo: Fred LeBlanc
Kendade
Hall's dramatic atrium took shape this summer.
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By far the most dramatic
construction this summer was the almost magical transformation
of Kendade Hall from a construction zone to a virtually complete
building. (See article on Kendade, page one.) Carr Laboratory
is currently undergoing a complete renovation and will be ready
for occupancy by spring semester 2003. Cleveland Hall is scheduled
for a major renovation next summer. And Shattuck Hall, which is
adjacent to Cleveland, is scheduled for a complete renovation,
which will be done by next fall.
Just the Beginning:
The Blanchard Campus Center
This summer also saw
the start of work on the complete renovation/addition project
that will increase the vitality of the Blanchard Campus Center.
Plans call for the building to gain natural light from a skylight
above a central atrium connecting all three levels. The renovation
will provide a well-lit, integrated venue for dining, entertainment,
and social activity. A variety of culinary choices will be available
in the new and expanded Blanchard Café on the lower floor
of the building, which formerly housed the campus store. The middle
level will function as the building's “Main Street."
It will include a coffee bar, an art gallery, the campus store,
the campus information desk, and the student mailbox area. On
the upper floor will be WMHC's studios, the Mount Holyoke News
office, the Llamarada yearbook office, the Network office, the
Women's Center, other student organization offices, the Student
Programs Office, a meeting room, the day student lounge, and the
Student Government Association office. Additions to the building
will expand it to the south and the north and provide views of
Lower Lake. The additional space on the south will provide a dining
area that will double as a venue for concerts, performances, and
dances. Demolition work on the interior and exterior of the building
began this summer, and Lower Lake Road was relocated through the
former tennis courts. Foundation work also began this summer,
and steelwork will soon be under way for the two additions. Construction
will continue all year, and the project is expected to be completed
for fall semester 2003 use.
A Guide to Temporary
Locations for Displaced Offices and Individuals
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Move
over, art majors. Students participating in the Howard Hughes
First-Year Summer Program took time out from their studies
to get creative. They decorated a piece of Sheetrock serving
as a temporary wall in Clapp Laboratories with all manner
of scientific imagery. Unfortunately, the wall, and the
art, will soon be removed.
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Among the many projects
under way this summer was the creation of “swing space"
to accommodate faculty and staff who were displaced by construction
going on in the new science center, Blanchard Campus Center, and
other campus buildings. Facilities Management created spaces in
Clapp Lab, the Newhall Center, and in a post–World War II
apartment at 8 Park Street for displaced faculty members. The
campus store was relocated to a modular building across from Pratt
Hall. Moved to the lower level of Wilder Hall were WMHC radio;
the Mount Holyoke News office; the Llamarada yearbook office;
the Amnesty International library; public fax, public copier,
and vending machines; the student organization resource room;
student mailboxes; and the Blanchard information desk. The day
student lounge was moved to Lawrence House, which is located at
5 Woodbridge Street. The Student Government Association office
was moved to room 20 in North Mandelle Hall, and the Network office,
class board office, and the Women's Center are now on the fifth
floor of Williston Library.
The Student Programs Office was moved to 17 Woodbridge Street.
Finally, Coordinator of Health Education Karen Jacobus, who formally
maintained one office in the health center and another in Blanchard,
will now work only out of the health center.
Going Up: From
Elevators to a New England Barn
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Photo: Fred LeBlanc
This new "barn,"
shown under construction this summer, will be used to store
athletic equipment.
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While less dramatic
than some of the larger projects, a variety of other summer construction
projects will also improve campus life. A sampling of these jobs
follows: The old elevator in Abbey Hall is being replaced with
a new hydraulic one. In addition, student rooms were painted and
electrical service upgraded in the building. Work will begin shortly
on the removal of the old wooden “1904 Garden stairs."
During the fall, new stone steps, designed by landscape architect
Julie Moir Messervy of Wellesley, Massachusetts, will be installed.
In the parking lot opposite MacGregor Hall, seventy-five parking
spaces for students were added. Check valves were installed to
safeguard drinking water and fire protection systems. The steam
line that brings heat to Prospect Hall was replaced. A small timber-framed
building designed to look like a New England country barn, which
will be used to store athletic equipment, was constructed adjacent
to the Kendall Sports and Dance Complex athletic fields. In the
future, bathrooms will be installed in the structure to serve
athletes and spectators. The admission office received a modest
renovation. Areas of Eliot House and several administrators' offices
in Mary Lyon were also reconfigured. Roofs were replaced on the
food service building and over the art building's east lobby.
The rest rooms in the Reese Psychology-Education Building were
made handicapped accessible. Labs in Clapp 108 and 120 were renovated.
Built-in furniture in the student rooms in Buckland Hall was refinished,
and the boiler is being replaced in Dickinson House. Hardwood
floors were installed on the third and fourth floors of Pearsons
Hall. A variety of other projects, from installing new fire alarms
to new gas and steam lines, was also completed, but space does
not permit a full listing here.
Blanchard's Loss
Is Safford's Gain: Food Options for Faculty and Staff
While Blanchard Café
is closed, many of its staples—salads, cheeseburgers, pizza,
sandwiches, beverages, and more—will be served for faculty
and staff in Safford Hall Monday through Friday, from 11 am to
1 pm. During the renovation, Porter Hall “grab 'n'go"
will be open to faculty and staff as well as students. At Porter,
cash and checks will not be accepted. One Cards will be the only
form of payment allowed.
The
counter is
2,393
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