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Workers Take Advantage of Slow Summer Months to Renovate and Repair Buildings

>>>Workers hope to complete most renovations to the conservatory, part of the Talcott Greenhouses facility, by September.

Summer on campus is the time when Buildings and Grounds tackles major renovation and repair projects. As usual, says College project engineer Paul Breen, there will be plenty of construction activity indoors and out as labs are renovated, still more putty is applied to the conservatory dome, and offices are reconfigured. Campus sidewalk superintendents can enjoy a range of projects this year, including:

At Clapp Laboratory, two biology labs and a prep room will be fully modernized with new lighting and state-of-the-art benches with gas, electric, water, and computer service. Breen notes that the carpentry shop built the new benches to custom specifications and, he says, "They are better than those from catalogs." Another small lab in Clapp will also be renovated.

The Writing Center in Williston Library will gain more square footage, improved conditions, and networked computers. New offices and tutorial rooms will be carved out of existing library space, and new spaces will be created for library staff and for functions displaced by the Writing Center expansion.

The old freight elevator in the Reese Building will be replaced by a modern passenger model that meets new standards for handicap access.

Breen expects work on the new South Hadley Child Care Center to be substantially completed by the first week of June, with occupancy planned for July 1. The old day care center will be converted back into faculty housing later this year.

To provide better protection for documents in the Archives in the lower level of Dwight Hall, crews will be installing new equipment, correcting perimeter drainage, and tightening and replacing windows to reduce temperature and humidity fluctuations.

The fourth phase of greenhouse work at Talcott Arboretum continues, as workers painstakingly repair or replace glass panes, wood bars, and parts of the wrought iron structure that make up the dome. Drainage and wiring upgrades are also on the schedule.

Roofs are always on the summer work list; this year the flat part of the roof on Dwight has already been replaced. Workers will repair roofs at Willits-Hallowell, Shattuck, and the Central Heating Plant as the summer progresses.

Gorse Parking lot will be resurfaced, and the blacktop tennis courts repaired and repainted.

Expect underground steam line work in front of Pearsons Hall, under Park Street adjacent to the conservatory, at the steam line entrance into Buckland Hall, and between the library and the chapel.

Breen says construction coordination is always challenging when the campus is busy, including during the summer. "The fire department and bus companies need to know when regular access is unavailable. We have to coordinate when to turn off the power and water to buildings in use."