UAlbany construction continues

Construction on the new Indian Quad Dining hall is nearing completion, University at Albany officials said.

"I walked through it yesterday and it's coming along just great," said John Giarrusso, UAlbany's associate vice president of facilities management. "It's going to be a great destination on campus."

Everyone involved was a little nervous when construction started over a year ago, said Karen Kettlewell, the associate executive director of University Auxiliary Services.

Not only was the dining hall and kitchen completely gutted and renovated, but the two surrounding residence halls were redone as well.

The new dining facilities on Indian Quad feature a Mongolian Grill, where students can choose from an array of fresh vegetables and proteins to make a healthy, balanced meal. There will also be a bakery on Indian Quad, with fresh baked breads and sweets for students and faculty.

The official opening of the dining hall will be some time in August - a final date has not yet been set. Kettlewell said that Indian Quad will definitely be open by the first day of class with the other dining halls.

By the first day of class all the dining halls will be open, except State Quad Dining Hall, which served its last meal on May 11.

Demolition of the dining hall will start on May 18, and it is expected to be closed for the whole 2009-10 school year.

Unlike the Indian Quad construction, State Quad students will have the option to meal swipe on any quad, or in the Campus Center Commons, at any time for any meal. Students who live on other quads also have the option for meal swipes at the commons for any meal, said Eric Smith, the executive director of UAS.

State Quad will also have a small café in the basement of Melville Hall. This café will serve all students, but is primarily designed to serve State Quad residents. Kettlewell said the café will be a soup and sandwich place. Bagels and cold cereal will also be served there in the morning. The construction of the Melville Café is expected to be completed by August.

The estimated $30 million Campus Center expansion is still in the planning phases, said Giarrusso. The Office of Facilities Management is working with Student Success, UAS, and Academic Affairs to create the 75,000-square-foot addition. Throughout the year, administrators have met with students and faculty to decide what pieces will fit in the puzzle. They hope to come to a conclusion in the fall.

The new School of Business building, to be located opposite University Hall is being designed by a New York City architecture firm, Perkins & Will. Giarrusso said officials hope to break ground by Fall 2010. Facilities Management is still working out some kinks, like where to place visitor parking, he said.

The wooded area across University Drive from the University Police Department may become the site of a new 500-bed apartment-style dorm, Giarrusso said. Facilities Management is spending about $2 million to investigate the area. The investigation includes site analysis, and finding an architect to design the new dorms, and give a price quote.

"We're looking for someone to draw up building plans and give us a cost estimate," Giarrusso said. "This is pretty serious and very involved."

As for construction plans that happened this year: The Mega Mechanical Dig in Dutch Quad Parking Lot will be "buttoned up and finished by this summer," Giarrusso said. The Dig was done to replace the 40-year-old water pipes from the Physical Plant to the Podium. The construction has been going on for almost the entire 2008-09 academic year.

The Dutch Quad Parking Lot will also be expanded this summer. This expansion is expected to be completed by move-in.

The Indian Pond Dredging Project will be completed within the next few weeks. Natural restoration of the area will happen this summer.

The stair construction between Social Science and Business Administration will wrap up this summer, as well.

"We're finishing punch list items right now," Giarrusso said.

There will still be construction in that area, though, come this fall. The window walls by Mail Services will be completely replaced and will be completed by the summer of 2010.

The university also plans to look into a few projects they have yet to receive funding for. These projects include finishing the Purple Path by State Quad and the SEFCU Arena.

Other plans include restoring the campus to its original, pedestrian-friendly Edward Durrell Stone design. When the campus was constructed 40 years ago, Stone intended the campus to be a green place of recreation, not with cars piled up against the Podium, Giarrusso said.