Two years after Shaw Hall was gutted and refitted with new wiring and stackable furniture, another residence hall is facing its deadline for a nip and tuck.

Snyder and Phillips halls will be closed for about 18 months starting in May 2005 so contractors can make updates that will include renovating the community bathrooms, outdoor masonry and plumbing, electrical and heating systems. New windows and a sprinkler alarm system also will be installed, along with new outdoor accessibility.

The MSU Board of Trustees will vote Friday on whether to approve The Christman Company as construction manager for the project. In October, the board appointed Einhorn Yaffee Prescott Architectural & Engineering, with Neumann/Smith & Associates, the architect and engineer of the renovations.

"We did an assessment several years ago and decided that renovations need to happen in all the halls," University Housing Director Angela Brown said, adding that halls will be renovated in order of priority.

Many residents of Snyder and Phillips halls are looking forward to the renovations, especially after Mason and Abbott halls were renovated during the 1996-97 school year.

"The bathrooms need improving," hospitality business freshman Stephanie Carey said, adding that it would be nice to have a changing room installed.

"The floors are kinda icky," the Snyder Hall resident said, pointing to a spot where the hallway carpet is coming unglued.

Mary Lou Heberlein, manager for North Complex, said the renovations are welcomed.

"Freshmen have to live on campus, we want everyone else to live on campus," she said. "We have to give them a place they want to live in."

As University Housing continues to renovate dorms around campus, many students will be offset from their halls. This is where a new hall in Brody Complex might come into play, Brown said.

"We're looking at 300 bed spaces," she said. "We can manage with the halls we have right now, but we're going to need additional spaces when we renovate halls like Holden."

For these renovations, Brown said the same steps for accommodating students will be taken as when Shaw Hall was renovated, which consist mostly of offering fewer singles. Currently, 600 students live in Snyder and Phillips halls.

As to when the new hall might be built, Brown said it is still in the planning stages.

The renovations will likely cost about $17.5 million, which is something that concerns Snyder Hall resident Justin Bruner.

"Mason/Abbott across the street is really nice," the education and marketing senior said. "The dorms need to be updated, but it's hard to justify in a tight budget crunch."

Brown said the university carefully considers when to carry out a planned renovation.

"We're looking at the plan on a year-to-year basis," she said. "We look at what we have to do each year.

"Now is a good time to insert a renovation."

Brown also said that spending the money to improve halls now will not affect the building of another Brody hall.

"They're two separate projects. We're been working on plans for Snyder/Phillips for several years," she said. "It won't affect what may or may not happen at Brody."

Phillips Hall resident Keara Cromie is eagerly awaiting the renovations, citing a number of things in her dorm that don't work.

"The bathroom drain is broken, so it always smells," the nursing sophomore said, adding the seals on her windows are broken, allowing cold air into the room.

"Our heat is broken, so the room is always freezing. When we came back, my roommate and I had to wear winter coats around the room," she said.

"I think the renovations are very necessary."