Ohio University’s campus has had some changes made to it this summer, including new buildings and facelifts for existing structures. Here’s a round-up of the updates:
COLLEGE GREEN
The green will not look rad- ically different for returning students. The biggest change is the brick walkways, some of the which were rerouted to improve accessibility. The wood trim on Cutler, Chubb, Wilson and McGuffy Halls and Templeton Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium have a new coat of paint. The entranc- es to the green have also been refreshed — the stone in the Class Gate on the north side of the green was cleaned over the summer.
“We are very proud of this green, and we need to take care of it,” said Harry Wyatt, OU’s former associate vice president for architecture design and construction, on a call earlier this year.
Ohio University received $750,000 from state appropriations to address the repairs to Chubb Hall, and used $1.25 million from university reserves to complete the rest of the College Green improvements.
PARK PLACE
The familiar hub of traffic at OU had extensive work done both to the roadway, and the buildings surrounding it. The aging utility tunnel system that runs beneath the road and carries hot water was updated to make it more safe.
Baker University Center now has a new space on the first floor. The old Tech Depot has been combined with Bobcat Essentials to become the Bobcat Depot. The new retail store is located on the ground floor of Baker Center, previously occupied solely by the Tech Depot. The Allen Student Help Center is expanding into the old Bobcat Essentials space. The renovations will cost the university $700,000 from its reserves.
NEW RESIDENCE HALLS
Towering stacks of pre-fab concrete are being constructed near South Green. These new residence halls will eventually house around 900 students at a cost of more than $100 million. All the walls are now constructed, and large cranes used to erect the walls have been removed from the con- struction site. Last week, Richard Schultz, interim associate vice president for architecture, design and construction, said the housing plan was coming along well. The next milestone in the construction will be the completion of the roofs, on schedule for November.
REPURPOSED BUILDINGS
Both Tupper and Lindley Halls have sat unused for more than a year. That changed this summer, when crews began work to make the buildings useable for students and staff. Both buildings will have repaired water lines and repurposed layouts. They will mostly be used for classroom swing-space, for example, education classes will move from McCracken Hall to Lindley, and offices for faculty when completed. Almost $21 million will be used to refurbish the year. That changed two buildings.
OTHER PROJECTS
Other projects include infrastructure improvements on East and South Greens. Construction on East Green led to power outages and limited hot water for the residence halls during the month of May. Problems have since been repaired.
Emeriti Park has also seen work. Announced at the beginning of the summer, a project to dredge the pond in the park took place while students were gone. The leaves and silt which had settled at the bottom of the pond were removed with a method that is considered environmentally friendly and not disturbing to the pond’s ecosystem, by divers using vacuum hoses.
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