Dorms to close until 2014 for $27.2 million building changes
Most of the upcoming renovations to the Women’s Quadrangle will focus on its buildings’ interiors, but their appearance will change significantly, too.
“All three buildings will connect, which will be very nice for students,” Joe Fortune, Housing’s director of administration, said. “Each building will maintain its own identity, but getting from one to another will be a lot easier based on the connectors that we will put in place.”
The connectors will be built with students’ walking patterns in mind, Fortune said; a popular route to Russell House that cuts between Sims and McClintock will not be obstructed. Fortune said that University Housing kept the traffic flow in mind when planning the connection of the three buildings.
Besides the connectors, however, the facades of the buildings, which range from 53 to 73 years old, will not be significantly altered.
“The biggest change will be the connectors. When you see that, it may appear to look different just because you won’t be used to that,” Fortune said.
It’s a part of a major renovation to the three residence halls — McClintock, Sims and Wade Hampton — that will cost $27.2 million and start in the summer of 2013. The project is expected to be completed by the start of the 2014-2015 academic year and will take the three first-year residence halls out of use for the coming school year.
The two traditional-style residence halls, McClintock and Wade Hampton, will be converted into suite-style halls.
“That’s a huge change for the community,” Fortune said.
The two buildings were constructed in 1955 and 1959, respectively, and have always been traditional-style residences.
The style shift for these residence halls is not necessarily an indicator of what may happen in future renovations, Colleen Mullis, the assistant director of marketing and communications for University Housing, said.
The renovation will bring new mechanical systems to all three residence halls, which Mullis said should help prevent mold problems like those in Sims earlier this semester.
“[They] will be better able to remove the moisture from the air during the hot, humid summer months,” Mullis said.
The buildings will also have added common spaces for studying and socializing, according to Fortune.
But one thing that won’t change for the Women’s Quadrangle when it reopens in 2014 is who will live there.
“It will maintain its tradition as the Women’s Quad,” Fortune said.