Archived Edition: March 01, 2005 | Back to Current	Jul 31, 2010

Stetson project cost estimate raised
Caitlin O'Connell - Senior Editor

Architects from Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, the firm charged with constructing two new academic buildings and renovating Stetson to transform it into a library, presented their most recent plans for the Stetson-Sawyer construction project at a meeting with faculty and members of the project committee last Tuesday.

The two new academic buildings, which will form a quad with Stetson Hall, are estimated to cost from $30 to $32 million, up from the initial set budget of $24 million. The College hoped to allocate a total of $105 million to construct these academic office and classroom buildings and move the library to an expanded Stetson Hall.

“I have to guess that we’re going to be over [the $105 million mark] on the whole project,” said Cappy Hill, provost. “This is a project we really need to do. We desperately need the academic spaces and the library is reaching capacity.” The College will plan the details and the budget of the project in order to complete construction by 2010 or 2011.

Whether all the architects’ goals for the project and the items on the College’s wish list are attainable is less certain. Close analysis of the costs will determine which specific inclusions the budget can accommodate.

Michael Brown, co-chair of the Stetson-Sawyer Committee and professor of anthropology, said that high steel and energy costs, paired with high inflation, would make construction very expensive in the next few years. The buildings, he said, need to be as lean as possible.

By working within the budget, raising more funds or postponing part of the scheme, the College will meet the needs of the project without making unwanted tradeoffs, administrators said.

In addition to explaining concerns over the budget, Tuesday’s meeting brought to light some disagreement among the faculty about the best uses of the available space in the new buildings. The architects heard from an audience of approximately 30 faculty members who voiced their hopes and concerns about the new facilities. Although there will be a net increase of 20 to 30 offices, the number of classrooms will not increase and several members of the faculty advised making efficient use of the rooms.

Faculty members spoke to the disparate needs of each department. While some professors asked for easy simultaneous use of blackboards and projection screens, others requested quiet rooms in which students could see and hear each other in discussions.

In the current plans, four reading rooms are devoted to English, economics, history and political science, four of the larger departments. The remaining departments included in the buildings will share three other reading rooms.

Professors also urged the architects to maintain a sense of character throughout the buildings despite limited funds. “[The building] can not look like a mall, a Marriot or a state school,” said Joe Cruz, assistant professor of philosophy.

Faculty members offered many ideas for the architects, but reached no common conclusion. “We know very little about faculty and student preferences in any rigorous fashion,” said George Marcus, professor of political science. He suggested taking a survey to better understand common sentiments.

Aiming to satisfy lasting needs rather than particular affinities of individual faculty members, the architects are drawing out plans that are designed to be budget-conscious and generally suit student and faculty needs for years to come.

Despite the budget concerns and disputes regarding the space usage, the meeting with the architects illustrated the progress that has been made and the high level of anticipation for the project. “The concept of the whole project is what people are really excited about,” said David Pilachowski, co-chair of the Stetson-Sawyer committee and College librarian.

A new green space, where Sawyer Library is now, will reunite Stetson, Chapin and the frosh quad, which were all designed in the early-20th century by Cram and Ferguson. The new buildings, constructed of brick and stone, will be in a modern style that complements, but does not overshadow, their older counterparts.

The rectangular academic building to the south will face Route 2 and serve as a gateway to the quad. On the first floor, an outdoor walkway will lead to the quad and create a prime passageway between the quad and Spring Street-bound traffic. The south building will house a large classroom and 52 of the project’s 186 offices, which are all sized at 160 square feet to provide enough space for tutorial sessions.

The façade of the north building will follow the line of Chapin Hall and Bernhard Music Center before turning in an L-shape to the north, ending adjacent to Lehman Hall.

Inside the main entrance from the quad, a two-story, glassed-in gallery will stretch northward along the inside of the “L,” looking westward into a courtyard squared by Bernhard.

Wide hallways and alcoves will provide gathering and study spots with couches or tables and chairs. Faculty offices, department reading rooms, seminar-sized classrooms and a public events room for small lectures and receptions will lead off of corridors.

There will be four floors including the lowest level, which is underground on the south side and at ground level on the north side.

Underneath the new quad, the basement of Sawyer will be renovated to house high-density book stacks and to store archives and other collections.

The architects will be back on campus with new and updated plans for these buildings and the library on March 16. Additional cost estimates will be available in April.