Heavy construction on campus continues as the University completes various projects to update, renovate and expand campus.
Residential Life, parking garage, parking and street renovations and construction are all combining to make commuting across campus somewhat difficult. These projects are funded through the sale of revenue bonds, according to Roger Husser, director of Planning, Design and Construction for Facility Services.
“It is partly coincidental that there is so much construction,” Husser said.
He said the construction around campus is both a reflection of the University growing to meet the current needs of its students as well as modernization of various campus buildings.
The construction of two new state-funded buildings, the Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (in the School of Veterinary Medicine) and the Animal and Food Science Laboratory (behind the AgCenter), is projected to be completed at the end of this month, Husser said.
Res Life is going through a series of construction projects as part of a larger revenue project. Husser said the renovation of Annie Boyd Hall is scheduled for completion by the end of this month.
Evangeline Hall, the next project planned by Res Life, will undergo renovations similar to those of Annie Boyd.
“We have a lot of projects that are being completed right now and then we will see a pause, and then a lot of other projects begin renovation,” Husser said.
Construction for the headquarters of the LSU Foundation will begin in the spring semester. Currently located in the Lod Cook Alumni Center, the headquarters will be moved to a new building on the corner of Skip Bertman Drive and Nicholson Drive where the old Alex Box Stadium was located. The Lod Cook Alumni Center will now house other University entities such as the LSU Press and the LSU Office of Communications and University Relations, which are currently located in former sorority houses on West Lakeshore Drive.
Phase II of the Easy Streets renovation is set to begin next summer and will focus on construction along Fieldhouse Drive, South Stadium Drive and the west end of South Campus Drive.
Next summer should also mark the completion of the $6 million construction of the Career Services center in the Student Union. Husser said that this construction will move Career Services into a more up-to-date and modern space.
Patrick F. Taylor Hall is expected to begin construction in the next 12 to 18 months, Husser said. This construction will include an annex on the west side of the building that will form the first building in the new quadrangle. There is no date of completion for the construction of a new quadrangle near Patrick F. Taylor.
Projects still waiting to be funded include the renovations for the French House and the old engineering shops in the University’s art department. The start date for those projects will depend on when the state legislature decides to fund them, Husser said.
A piece of construction equipment sits motionless alongside Highland Road Monday, July 8, 2013 near the Student Union.
