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Construction started in April to turn Xavier Hall's empty garage into art studios and graphic design classrooms for the university’s new visual arts program.
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Summer of Reconstruction
Four campus construction or refurbishment projects are or will be underway this spring and summer, making it one of the busiest times of simultaneous construction in USF history, said Glenn Loomis, assistant vice president for facilities management.
The $12 million reconstruction of Kendrick Hall will continue as new faculty offices are finished in the space that formerly housed the law library. New art studios will be carved out of an abandoned garage below Xavier Hall in preparation for the commencement of USF’s new visual and fine arts program. Gillson Hall, the student residence building, will get new carpeting and fresh paint, and Campion Hall’s ground-floor commuter lounge is being refurbished as a receiving area for prospective students. That project will be completed by the end of May.
The $15 million renovation and expansion of the business school, the next large project on campus, will break ground next summer. An actual start date hasn’t been set pending an environmental and city planning review.
The largest project taking place on campus this summer is the renovation of Kendrick Hall, home to the School of Law. Construction on the first phase began approximately six months ago and should be complete by June. The entire project is expected to wrap up by fall 2003.
The Kendrick Hall renovation involves approximately 23,000 square feet of space that formerly housed the law library prior to the opening of the Dorraine Zief Law Library in 2000. The space will be used primarily for faculty offices. Once this phase is complete, work will focus on renovating the classroom space on the lower level of Kendrick, and renovating the building’s south wing.
For the new visual arts program beginning this fall, two large studios devoted to painting and sculpture and three graphic design classrooms will be constructed in Xavier Hall’s former garage. The art studios will accommodate 20 students each and the computer classrooms will each house 20 computers. Two large roll-up garage doors and large windows will give the studios plenty of light, said Tom Lucas, S.J., chair of the fine arts department.
“It’s going to be a spectacular renovation of underused space,” Fr. Lucas said. “It’s going to be an ideal space to get the program up and running.”
As of the end of April, 247 people had applied to the visual arts program, Fr. Lucas said. He expects to enroll 60.
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