Caution tape and “MEN WORKING” signs have dotted students’ routes to classes since the start of the semester. Students have often been greeted by construction workers near the Center for the Arts’ main entrance or a gaping hole outside Talbert Hall.
Some construction sites this semester include: The Center for the Arts, Hayes Hall, Clark Hall, the top of Capen Hall and outside of Talbert Hall.
Kevin Thompson, director of Facilities Planning and Design, said UB spends between $12 and $25 million per year on repairs. The Spectrum had an interview with Thompson to get a rundown of the biggest projects on North and South Campus.
Currently, there are 30-40 construction and renovation projects on all of UB’s campuses.
Center for the Arts
The Center for the Arts (CFA) is undergoing renovations after parts of the building have deteriorated after more than 20 years of existence.
The building’s renovations cost $1.4 million.
The construction is focused on the building’s perimeter, fixing water infiltration issues and salt erosion on the north side staircase. Thompson said addressing the building’s faults is broken down into two phases, and the current construction is only phase one. Phase two includes replacing the skylights in the atrium, but that project will be completed in the next two years.
Thompson said construction on the CFA began over the summer, so students would be less disturbed during class time.
Ann Mangan, an academic adviser in the media study department, was working in the CFA during the summer when the construction started. Mangan said the jackhammering of construction made the CFA walls shake, but she said the severity of the construction’s disturbances decreased once the fall semester began.
Hayes Hall
Hayes Hall, used for UB’s School of Architecture, has been “gutted” out and will be completely rebuilt, Thompson said. The total project cost $25 million and should be completed in the fall of 2015.
The project started a year and a half ago with plans to redo the interior of the building. The renovations of Hayes Hall are a part of UB 2020, which is UB’s comprehensive plan to create a university that is “sharper in both focus and physical appearance and stronger academically,” according to the UB 2020 Initiative website.
Buffalo Materials Research Center
The Buffalo Materials Research Center, located outside of Clark Hall, is being demolished. Thompson said the building is no longer needed and a grass field will be laid in its place.
From 1960-94, the Buffalo Materials Research Center was used to house a nuclear reactor, but hasn’t been used for research since 1994. In 2005, all radioactive waste was removed from the building, starting the demolition process. The contaminated materials that are still in the building will be removed and transported off campus, according to a UB press release.
Capen Hall
Capen Hall is being repaired because the mortar in between the bricks of the building is loosening, according to Thompson. The cost of mortar restoration is included in the $25 million spent per year on repairs. Construction workers, like those currently working on Capen, are generally under a contract not affiliated with the university.
Thompson said construction during the semester is normal. The construction season in Buffalo is short due to Buffalo’s temperamental weather. Some projects have to be completed during the summer, like renovating dorms and classrooms, because these are the projects that affect students directly the most, according to Thompson. Some repairs, however, are supposed to be completed during the summer months but end up not being able to be finished on time.
Talbert Hall
Thompson said there is currently a sidewalk restoration project outside of Talbert Hall. He said sidewalk restoration projects take up a “significant” portion of the $25 million spent per year on repairs, because they take up a large surface area.
Arthan Robinson, a freshman biomedical engineering major, said he is tired of walking around the construction area to get to class because it is “extra work.”
Robinson said he would rather have construction take place at night, over the summer or during the winter, when regular classes aren’t in session, and there should be a pathway made for students. The hole makes getting to class and catching the bus to South Campus, where he lives, more difficult.
Thompson said sidewalk repairs are common on UB’s campuses. These maintenances, however, usually take place over the summer, but it is also normal for them to take place in the fall.
email: news@ubspectrum.com
