Madison Shumway

Staff Writer

As campus buildings age and develop weather or environment-related problems, remodels and upgrades become necessary for the safety of students and staff.

Facilities Services assesses structures each year and addresses such problems as they arise, and Maintenance and Operations spends $3 million each year to maintain the building infrastructures and envelopes, according to Associate Vice President of Facilities Cheryl Hanson.

“The buildings are inspected for safety by the Division of Building Safety every year … and if there are deficiencies, we have that on a list that we try to address them systematically as soon as we can with the funding we have,” she said. “If there’s something very dangerous or that looks very bad, we address it immediately.”

One recent example of this process is the evacuation of the West Campus apartments. After an evaluation of the soil under the building found it to be unstable, the university took action and removed tenants.

While other campus buildings have faced similar issues, the cost of fixing the apartments has been deemed prohibitive, Hanson said. The building may be demolished, but no plans have been finalized.

“When something becomes an issue, of course, we immediately inspect it and make sure we bring in a structural engineer and make sure the buildings aren’t experiencing some stresses that they shouldn’t,” Hanson said. “I’m not saying that we’re perfect in that, but we have addressed those things in the past.”

Colonial Hall also faced differential settlement of soil in the past, but the university was able to save it. The crack that was later repaired formed early in the structure’s life, and the building withstood earthquakes that destroyed other buildings, Hanson said.

Another campus edifice that has survived years of change and stress is the administration building, which was entered into the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

“The building is in excellent condition, and the integrity of the original site, structural system, materials and architectural design have been maintained,” reads the entry form.

Recent remodels have adapted the structure to fit a larger load of people within, Hanson said, including a revamp of the heating/ventilation/air-conditioning system and the removal of walls that contained lead paint.

“That building is a very good, very hardy building,” she said. “Although it’s very old, it has a lot of good life left in it. We’ve done a lot of things to improve it.”

A newer structure, the Red Hill Building, required work this year after ceiling tiles began falling down. While Facilities is still investigating the issue, it suspects a roof drain malfunctioned and overflowed, leaking into the interior of the building.

This winter’s pattern of melting, freezing, then melting again may have caused the issue, Hanson said. The problem, and its resolution, exemplifies the university’s approach to unforeseen structural complications.

“We try to anticipate everything, but sometimes there are things that happen,” she said. “We just try to fix it as quickly as possible and provide support so that we’re not disrupting the activities for the students and staff.”