Students Benefit from Summer Improvements, Repairs Totaling More Than $133 Million

Sept. 5, 2006

Contact:

Daniel J. Fitzgibbons 413/545-0444

AMHERST, Mass. – The University of Massachusetts Amherst is in the midst of its own “extreme makeover,” with hundreds of millions of dollars worth of renovations, repairs, improvements and new construction projects dotting the campus map as students return for the fall semester.

According to James Cahill, director of facilities and campus planning, substantial progress was made during the summer on a variety of improvements and new buildings, including the $92.9 million student apartment complex, which opened its doors last weekend. According to Cahill, workers will likely be on the North Residential Area site until October to attend to final construction details.

Residents of the Southwest Residential Area will enjoy the benefits of a $13 million, eight-month renovation of the Berkshire Dining Commons. The state-of-the-art dining facility now features 10 food stations, serving everything from pizza to sushi to vegan and vegetarian fare.

Also scheduled to open in September is a new teaching kitchen and restaurant on the 11th floor of the Lincoln Campus Center. The facility, renovated at a cost of $6.1 million, will provide an important training area for hospitality and travel management majors as well as students studying nutrition, says Cahill. The 200-seat restaurant, which will be fully outfitted this fall, will also give the campus a new venue for elegant events. Improvements include new furniture, a high-end audio-visual system and new lighting, he says.

Contractors completed the replacement of the windows in Herter Hall, says Cahill, but the planned replacement of the heating and ventilation system was set back by delays in equipment deliveries. The $3.5 million project will be completed next year to avoid disruptions to classes and faculty members who have offices in the building, he says.

The $6.3 million deck replacement project at the Du Bois Library, which experienced weather-related delays for two years, is nearing completion with construction now focused on the courtyard. “The building is watertight,” says Cahill, and $13 million in planned interior repairs can move ahead.

A nearly $1 million renovation of the provost’s office and board room in the Whitmore Administration Building is expected to continue through September, says Cahill.

Repairs to the roof and facade of Morrill Science Center, delayed by a roofers strike, are now back on track, says Cahill. The $1.6 million project will continue through the fall.

Several athletic facilities are also ready for competition. McGuirk Alumni Stadium received new artificial turf at a cost of $1.2 million, and the surface at Garber Field was replaced for $2 million. In addition, several new tennis courts were built behind the Mullins Center, while some existing courts were overhauled. The tennis court project cost $1.4 million. The new track and field facility was completed at a cost of $3.1 million.

Meanwhile, the steel is rising for the $118.7 million central heating plant west of the Mullins Center. A related $8.6 million project, construction of a utility corridor from the heating plant through the center of campus, has reached the point of “substantial completion,” and high-pressure steam is available to heat the four new residence halls. Utility work near the old power plant is continuing, and Campus Center Way will remain closed through the fall semester.

Site preparation is under way for the $92.7 million Integrated Sciences Building and the $23 million Studio Arts Building. Marshall Hall Annex, which housed many art studios, will be demolished soon, and art students will move to modular facilities installed near the Textbook Annex. Work is also in progress on the $16.3 million renovation of Skinner Hall to house the School of Nursing.

The summer was also busy for Housing and Residence Life, which completed nearly $4 million in major improvements to residence halls and apartments, according to Director of Housing Operations John Findley. The Residence Hall Trust Fund paid for the projects.

The projects include the installation of $720,000 in new furniture and equipment across the residence hall system as well as $325,000 for new fire alarms and emergency lights in Knowlton. The electrical system in Mary Lyon was upgraded at a cost of more than $239,000. A new fire alarm panel was installed in John Quincy Adams for $50,000, and Brett received new fire-rated doors at a cost of $164,000.

Roof replacements and masonry repairs were made at Butterfield and Gorman for a total of $970,000, and bathroom partitions were replaced in Gorman, Knowlton and Southwest at a cost of $342,000. Another $312,900 paid for new floors in Thoreau and Butterfield, and $120,000 went to exterior masonry repairs on Van Meter.

Other projects included a new generator for Van Meter ($80,000), interior doors and hardware in Crabtree ($100,000), wardrobe refinishing in MacKimmie ($200,000) and repairs to stairs and decks at Lincoln Apartments ($369,000).

Findley says fire sprinklers were installed in Van Meter at a cost of $1.453 million. The project was funded by the UMass Building Authority.

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