TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013
The Daily Eastern News | CAMPUS
Pemberton Hall | Renovations
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Construction to end by Summer 2013 Old textbook rental facility to convert to Honors College By Samantha McDaniel Student Governance Editor The quiet atmosphere of Pemberton Hall has been interrupted by the sounds of hammering and drilling to build a new location for the Eastern Honors College. The conversion of the old textbook rental facility attached to Pemberton to the Honors College was started in summer 2012 and woke residents like Tess Harris, a sophomore business major, early in the mornings. Harris said last semester the sounds of the construction crew would start early. “It’s very loud in the mornings,” Harris said. “I’m not woken up so much this semester, but it was every day last semester. Stephen Shrake, the associate director of design and construction, said they are currently in the final stages of the renovation. He said the elevator has been shipped and will be installed within five to six weeks after arrival.
Dominic Baima | The Daily Eastern Ne ws
Eastern employees work on covering the exterior of the old textbook rental wing of Pemberton Hall on Jan. 11 in. The Honors College is scheduled to move into the second floor in May.
worked with the Honors College to find what would be best for the space and shared information about the progression, Stimac said. “It feels as if it is truly on campus,” Stimac said. “We are on university property and we’re just 50 feet across the street, so it’s not like we are on the other side of town, but we’ll be on campus, readily available for the students.”
“With Pemberton being the first dormitory in Illinois, having the Honors College next to something that historic is wonderful.” -John Stimac, director of the Honors College Shrake said Eastern staff is installing dry wall and finishing what they can before the elevator is installed. A contractor is installing entrances on the northwest corner and east side of the building. “I believe they had a problem with the east side and had to go back and reorder some material,” Shrake said. Shrake said any work that would affect the services to the residences of the building was done over the breaks, like the electric and water. John Stimac, the director of the Honors College, said he is excited for the new location. The architect and the staff of Facilities, Planning and Management have
Stimac said the current location is not as accessible to current and perspective students. The new location will make the Honors College more visible to the campus community. “Right now, Booth House, while it has a lot of character, from the exterior (it) is not the most inviting,” Stimac said. “I think this will help with both raising the profile of Honors on campus, but also in recruitment and retention.” He said the new location will have a lot of character as well. The architect has shown them designs and plans for the area, and Stimac said he believes it will be inviting
for students. “It will have its own character and will not be just another administrative office,” Stimac said. The new location will include a classroom, conference room and research rooms to increase the functionality of the space, Stimac said. He also said he likes that it is a part of Pemberton. “With Pemberton being the first dormitory in Illinois, having the Honors College next to something that historic is wonderful,” Stimac said. With the Honors Colleges being connected to Pemberton Hall, Harris said she believes more people will learn about Pemberton. “If people start coming, they’ll see our signs about the history of Pemberton and I think it’ll help it get more well-known around campus,” Harris said. Harris said the residents of the hall are friendly and the hall usually stays pretty quiet, other than the sounds from the construction. She said the increase in traffic will probably have an effect on the atmosphere, but she does not think it will cause a big issue. “It’ll definitely be a lot louder,” Harris said. “It is very quiet as for standard of living.” According to the April 16 edition of The Daily Eastern News, the project cost about $3.5 million to fix the floors, walls, ceiling and electric, as well as the installation of an elevator.
Dominic Baima | The Daily Eastern Ne ws
Eastern employees work on insulating part of an HVAC unit on Jan. 11 in the second floor of Pemberton hall in the old textbook rental section. The Honors College is moving into this area once renovations are complete.
Stimac said with all of the renovations they are doing, Pemberton will become Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant. Harris said she knows a building is necessary to fulfill the ADA standards, but would not be necessary for Pemberton Hall. “I know they have to, but honestly we only have three floors being used, so it’s not really that necessary,” Harris said. “It’ll be nice for some people.” Shrake said they will have a little work after the elevator is installed. “The key is getting the elevator in and whatever work we have to do after it is installed in those areas around the doors and equipment room,” Shrake
said. The projected is expected to be completed by summer 2013 and the Honors College will start transitioning over to the new location. Stimac said they have been told they should be able to start the move in mid to late April. “We are currently identifying items that we have to bring over to the new facility, then items we’d like to bring over,” Stimac said. “We are not sure there is going to be room.” Samantha McDaniel can be reached at 581-2812 or slmcdaniel@eiu.edu.
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