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Topic: Alan should enjoy this

Topic: Alan should enjoy this

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TWT
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Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/21/2011 8:42:10 PM

The Ohio University Board of Trustees on Friday approved a six-year capital plan that calls for a significant boost in how much the university will be spending to keep its buildings and other facilities in good shape. It also got a look at a longer-term plan that calls for continued increased spending in this area.

OU President Roderick McDavis laughingly emphasized after the board meeting that a campus power outage that struck during the meeting – and that left the Trustees following their printed agendas first with flashlights, and later with electric lanterns – was not deliberately planned to dramatize the issue of the university's crumbling infrastructure. With or without the temporary blackout, however, the Trustees appeared to take seriously the need to put more money into upkeep.

The six-year plan they approved Friday calls for spending $977.5 million in this area over that period; a proposed 20-year plan calls for spending more than $2.5 billion to fix up and rehab dorms, classroom buildings, utilities and other campus fixtures. Much of the money will be borrowed, though OU officials acknowledged that some may have to come from increased tuition and fees.

http://www.athensnews.com/ohio/article-35421-trustees-ok-ambitious-building-maintenance-agenda.html

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Jeff McKinney
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/24/2011 11:41:22 PM

Vedder and Swank spotted at the Donkey discussing this over a cappucino.

MedinaCat
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/28/2011 3:27:06 PM

"Going under the wrecking ball if the plan is implemented would be Foster House, Brough House, Cady Hall, Martzolff House, O�Bleness House and Fenzel House in 2013; Dougan House, True House and Smith House the following year; and Hoover House, Ewing House, Wray House, Weld House, Armbruster House and Atkinson House in 2016."

Two thoughts...
Relating to the quote above, this appears to be destruction, then reconstruction versus rehab. I have a hard time accepting this is a cheaper or more effective way to go.

Now to talk out of the other side of my mouth, knowing in advance that there will be critics, naysayers and a certain level of opposition to this kind of spending, the University needs to start going on the PR offensive. Any spending plan should pitch the benefits to Athens County and SE Ohio in terms of job creation/retention. Promote and list how many jobs this will create and how much money such projects pump into the local economy. With the IPF for instance, how much money is coming to SE Ohio from outside the region and how many jobs are going to be created as a result? Don't wait to use this information in the defense of a project, but get it out there in front when promoting such things. Seems simple to me.

JSF
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/28/2011 9:48:29 PM

MedinaCat wrote:

Relating to the quote above, this appears to be destruction, then reconstruction versus rehab. I have a hard time accepting this is a cheaper or more effective way to go..

I think if you were to see those buildings you would agree with the plan.

"Loyalty to a hometown or city is fleeting and interchangeable, but college is a stamp of identity."- Kyle Whelliston, One Beautiful Season.

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MedinaCat
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/29/2011 10:45:53 AM

JSF wrote:

MedinaCat wrote:

Relating to the quote above, this appears to be destruction, then reconstruction versus rehab. I have a hard time accepting this is a cheaper or more effective way to go..

I think if you were to see those buildings you would agree with the plan.

That's also what a current student told me last night. So I guess the investment in maintenence is 20 years too late.

JSF
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/29/2011 8:36:43 PM

MedinaCat wrote:

JSF wrote:

MedinaCat wrote:

Relating to the quote above, this appears to be destruction, then reconstruction versus rehab. I have a hard time accepting this is a cheaper or more effective way to go..

I think if you were to see those buildings you would agree with the plan.

That's also what a current student told me last night. So I guess the investment in maintenence is 20 years too late.

Yeah. New South's in bad shape. Falling apart in places.

anorris
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/30/2011 1:33:15 AM

JSF wrote:

MedinaCat wrote:

JSF wrote:

MedinaCat wrote:

Relating to the quote above, this appears to be destruction, then reconstruction versus rehab. I have a hard time accepting this is a cheaper or more effective way to go..

I think if you were to see those buildings you would agree with the plan.

That's also what a current student told me last night. So I guess the investment in maintenence is 20 years too late.

Yeah. New South's in bad shape. Falling apart in places.

I'll vouch for that too, sad as it is, demo and rebuild is probably cheaper. Too much time has been wasted doing emergency maintenance only (I think they had to close portions of the catwalk last year because the concrete was falling away).

Bobcatbob
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/30/2011 1:10:01 PM

Should the New South be razed, it would be interesting to see if the "mod" concept survives the transition. I never lived there but those dorms were in great demand when it opened. How's that arrangmenet viewed today?
When I was in the buildings last a few years ago, it seemed unduly cramped in the singles, at least.

PutnamField
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/30/2011 1:57:52 PM

Crawford, Brown, Mackinnon and Pickering halls were built in the 1960s. The rest of the South Green dorms - the ones that are slated for demolition - were mostly built in the 1970s.

I would like somebody to explain to me why and how brick and concrete buildings that were built by professional contractors to the specifications of a major institution would have a useful life of only 40 years.

Unacceptable answer = today's students demand more.

My second question is why the older South Green dorms will last longer than the newer ones.

anorris
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/30/2011 1:57:52 PM

I think the mod concept is a decent one, but the rooms were old enough and cramped enough, and South is far enough away from the heart of campus that I didn't seem to know as many people who were clamoring to get there as were trying to get onto East or West. The single bedrooms did seem a bit cramped to me when I was in them, and the common room of my friend's mod was pretty poorly furnished. I think the concept has a lot of potential if it is executed a bit better, like the renovations that have gone on in the last decade on East.

@Putnam: Most of East is even older, and even the buildings like Washington & Gam that haven't been recently updated seem to be in better shape. I wish I could explain it.

Last Edited: 11/30/2011 2:00:16 PM by anorris

JSF
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/30/2011 4:09:11 PM

I believe the mods are going away.

Quote:

I would like somebody to explain to me why and how brick and concrete buildings that were built by professional contractors to the specifications of a major institution would have a useful life of only 40 years.

My guess is that the flood plain has something to do with it... or they just built it super cheap.

Last Edited: 11/30/2011 4:10:11 PM by JSF

Bobcatbob
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 11/30/2011 5:02:11 PM

Explanation: "built by the lowest bidder"

Didn't our University fight a recent court battle to continue this mode of business?

First Street Forever
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/3/2011 10:50:49 PM

I hope Pickering and Gam are protected by one of those Historical Landmarks dealies...

I don't endorse the furry lifestyle, but when the Bobkitten is involved things can change mighty quickly...

anorris
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/4/2011 10:41:28 AM

First Street Forever wrote:

I hope Pickering and Gam are protected by one of those Historical Landmarks dealies...

Doubtful, but I don't think Pickering is going anywhere according to the info I've seen about the proposed projects on South, and I know Gam and the rest of East that hasn't already been renovated are planning on being renovated. No demolition is on the table there.

PutnamField
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/4/2011 12:49:21 PM

LOL an historic landmark that was built in the 1960s.

mcbin
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/4/2011 3:24:08 PM

PutnamField wrote:

I'm wondering the same thing here as PF. I lived in New South dorms, granted ~15 years ago, and while they're nothing at all impressive, they seemed sturdy. They had cat-5 ran everywhere by 1997, cable hookups, and seemed so simple, I don't know how much could go wrong that would require demolition.

The catwalks did look terrible back then though. I've got no idea if they're unsafe or not, however if looks determined safety, we wouldn't want to drive over half the bridges we do in today's world.

David E Brightbill
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/4/2011 5:04:27 PM

Just to let everyone know there was an extensive study done of our dorm space. Then a committee of trustees including a student trustee and administrators worked with a consulting firm to arrive at a solution that was cost effective, designed to last like our older dorms, meet the needs of current and future students and maintain Ohio' traditional look. The annual maintenance costs for the new South (not the front 4) exceed the per foot cost of the older but much better constructed East and West Greens. Replacing new south with new dorms with more modern configuration will not only help in recruiting but will actuallly help reduce our maintenance costs and actually cover some of the debt service.

oldkatz
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/4/2011 5:23:24 PM

Gotta trust the trustee on this one.

"All my inside sources tell me I have no inside sources." Salvatore "money bucks" Mafiosiano.

mcbin
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/4/2011 5:42:59 PM

Thanks for the info, David. Glad it's a well thought out decision. (although still seems odd how much maintenance needs done)

I'll be bummed when they knock down Smith & Atkinson, but I do see why students these days wouldn't want such small rooms. Living in the mods though, were some fun times.

.
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/5/2011 1:00:17 PM

I liked the mod concept. It was cramped but preferable to me.

And I have to wonder if with the influx of students in the late 1960s and early 1970s didn't force the university to get up dorms as fast and as cheaply as possible, longevity be damned.

Last Edited: 12/5/2011 1:01:06 PM by .

Bobcatbob
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/5/2011 1:32:24 PM

Not just the New South, but Bromley Hall, too. Is there /was there ever another private dormitory at a state university?

JSF
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/5/2011 10:50:43 PM

mcbin wrote:

I'll be bummed when they knock down Smith & Atkinson, but I do see why students these days wouldn't want such small rooms. Living in the mods though, were some fun times.

Counterpoint: I lived in a mod my first year and the people in it were not so good. It wasn't a fun year.

bn9
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/6/2011 9:20:18 AM

JSF wrote:

mcbin wrote:

I'll be bummed when they knock down Smith & Atkinson, but I do see why students these days wouldn't want such small rooms. Living in the mods though, were some fun times.

Counterpoint: I lived in a mod my first year and the people in it were not so good. It wasn't a fun year.

I only lived in the mods for one quarter. I can definately see that if you were not in with good people how terrible it could be. Plus, the singles were SMALL. I could lay on my bed and reach everything in the room.

Mike Johnson
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/8/2011 11:41:15 PM

I truly believe that only in America do institutions construct buildings that become victims of wreckers' balls after 40 or 50 years.

Other countries build buildings to really last. A couple examples with which I am familiar.

* I've had the privilege of visiting the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. As I recall the main admin building was built in1812. It is the length of 2 or 3 football fields. The main hallway that runs the length of the building was paved in stone. So many cadet boots have trod that hallway for 200 years that they've worn a shallow channel in the stone. You think any serious thought would be given to razing that building?

* I've also visited Christ Hospital School. The word hospital has nothing to do with medical care. Rather, when the school was established some 450 years ago, it was founded as a school for disadvantaged children - thus use of the word hospital. The school's "new campus" was built in the 1890s. Many of the buildings have undergone internal updating but raze the buildings? Be serious.

My old HS was dedicatred in 1924. It is scheduled to feel the bite of the wrecker's ball in 2014. We alums joke that the ball might shatter when trying to batter down the walls of that sturdily built school. Why raze it? Because an analysis showed it too expensive to maintain.

Funny how other nations that seem to hold their buildings in greater respect do their analyses and reach different conclusions.

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Bobcatbob
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RE: Alan should enjoy this

Posted: 12/9/2011 8:30:52 AM

Mike,
You probably know, too, that most Euorpean homes are built to be lived in for generations. Concrete, stone and brick are primamry materials. They would probably bust a gut laughing at one of the hastily constructed housing tracts many of us call "home".

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