A new construction project has risen from the ground on Eastern’s campus. As Eastern’s campus changes and expands, Centennial Hall, formerly known as the Eagle Learning Center, is in the midst of being renovated to include the Admissions Great Room with greater seating, 15 new workstations and a classroom.
Centennial Hall is home to lots of classrooms and department offices alike, and it is frequently flooded with students and faculty buzzing around on their way to and from classes and meetings. The goal of the expansion is to make a designated place for admissions workers and more space for classes to be held.
Meggin Capers, Eastern’s Chief Space Management & Logistics Officer, offered insight in an interview as to what this upgrade provides to the campus community. “While it may not be obvious, the answer is growth. Building Templeton Hall has provided space for both Templeton Honors College and the Music Department to grow, perform, and expand their offerings. It has also provided the whole campus community a much needed space to gather for special events, large group meetings and other events that would not have fit before,” she said.
In the meantime, the students and faculty whose work and classes reside in the building are disrupted by constant noise, similar to when Templeton Hall was built last year.
The Norwood Company – Eastern’s typical crew for all things construction – has returned with their trucks and tools to break ground on the expansion of Centennial Hall.
The construction is blocked off by portable fences and wraps around the sides and back of the building. The front and student entrances remain open, but both have fences running alongside them.
Laila Alexander, a first-year student at Eastern, shared a concern in an interview: “My only concern with the construction is the air quality issues. With all the debris and dust, it can cause physical safety risks not only to students but staff. We have to keep the windows closed to prevent the dust particles from coming into the room,” she said.
Steven Hartner, Executive Director of Plant Operations, responded to this concern. “We recognize that construction activity can create additional demands on building HVAC systems, including air filtration. As part of our response to the Centennial Hall project, our HVAC contractor reviewed the building systems and ductwork and confirmed that the systems are operating as intended. However, based on the conditions associated with the construction, the contractor recommended increasing the frequency of air filter replacements to help maintain system performance. Plant Operations has approved this adjustment, and filters will be replaced twice as often throughout the construction period,” he said.
On top of the persistent noise of machines, trucks and workers’ voices, students are learning to navigate the outside of the building with such large blockades. The circle driveway that homes Centennial’s handicap accessible parking spaces is now swallowed up by fencing. Vehicles can no longer go around the circle, but must pull in and back out of the front half of it.
Without the accessible parking spaces, students must either ride Eastern’s campus vans to the front door or drive their own vehicles and park in the lot across the campus road from Centennial, leaving them with a small walk over to the door.
Centennial also has a back patio that is no longer accessible. This patio was previously used by students as a quiet but central place to study or complete assignments, and incoming students were often welcomed to sit down and speak with admissions counselors and other people getting them set up for campus.
Hartner emphasizes the usefulness of the new space: “In total, these improvements will increase Centennial Hall’s occupancy capacity by 112 people while providing more opportunities for meetings, events and day-to-day university operations,” he said.
A representative from the admissions office commented that the progress being made in the building is nothing but positive, and the department experienced no major negative effects despite being displaced for a short period of time.
Kenton Sparks, Provost & Vice President for Academic Affairs, gave a statement regarding the disruptions: “I’ll begin by conveying the University’s regret for any inconveniences created by our construction projects. In this and all projects, we try to plan for minimal disruptions. But that is easier planned than done,” he said in an interview.
There is no public date that the construction is expected to be finished, but it is not yet very far along from a visual standpoint. An email from Plant Operations in April welcomed students to reach out to them with any questions or concerns.
