The construction projects include the demolition of the MSC smokestack and additions and renovations to Wells Hall and three dorms in Brody Complex Neighborhood, all of which will continue through the coming months.

Margraves — the director of Campus Living Services — and her department will be responsible for putting the finishing touches on renovations to Emmons Hall when that construction is complete this year and will carry out the same process in Bailey and Rather halls next year.

Updates of those three dorm complexes alone will cost about $48.8 million, while the budget on Wells Hall currently sits at about $38 million.

Progress on all three projects remains ongoing, Margraves said.
“Every project is different, (but) I can’t say enough about the crews,” she said. “We have had very positive feedback.”

Emmons Hall
Construction on the hall — which started about a year ago — will finish up later this summer, at which time the building will be turned over to Campus Living Services.

Margraves’ department then will have “a couple weeks” to ready the facility for students this fall. The preparation will include an intensive cleaning of the building, as well as the finishing of the floors. The process also will continue with occasional touch-ups, Margraves said.

The renovations to the hall will cost about $13.8 million.

That cost will include changing the windows in the dorm, redesigning the colors and lighting and constructing a two-story atrium in the building. Many of the original corridors will allow more natural light to enter the area as a result of the new windows, Margraves said.

“I think the students will really appreciate it,” she said.

Emmons Hall also will house a community kitchen and new small and large gathering spaces as a result of the renovations.

“It’s gone fairly uneventfully,” university engineer Bob Nestle said. “It’s getting very close to being done.”

The changes already have drawn interest. Margraves said about 400 people signed up to return to the dorm this coming year. That number is a significant increase from the six or eight students she said stayed in the hall the year prior to construction.

Updates to dorms and other locations on campus fit into MSU’s “big picture” in terms of attracting students, said Jim Cotter, director of MSU’s Office of Admissions.

“I think providing housing environments that students desire as well as being attractive to students are all positive,” he said. “It is clear to students and their parents that we’re not sitting on our laurels — the university continues to move forward.”

Wells Hall
The addition to Wells Hall that has gone up over this school year was a result of the deteriorating condition of Morrill Hall — which is slated to be torn down, Nestle said. Morrill Hall had structural issues due to both its age and wooden frame. Upon completion, Wells Hall will house offices and programs that formerly sat in Morrill Hall.

“There were several options looked at, and the addition on Wells Hall turned out to be the favorite,” Nestle said. “Once that construction is done, then Morrill Hall will be demolished.”

Nestle said construction on the hall has progressed smoothly despite preliminary issues with the building’s location and said the university is not concerned about exceeding the project’s budget.

“It was a design problem to get that building sandwiched in between the two (buildings already on the site),” he said. “I think the architect ended up doing a good job.”

The project is on track to finish in August 2012, Nestle said.

Michael Merfert, a dietetics junior, said although it seems like the project is taking a long time, he’s looking forward to seeing it.

“It’ll be cool once they’re done, from what I’ve seen,” he said.

Bailey and Rather halls
Construction preparations for both buildings have been made over the past few weeks and more intensive work is scheduled to begin this week, said Rob McCurdy, a planner, inspector and analyst with the Division of Residential and Hospitality Services, or RHS.

As a result of the renovations, students will see brighter colors and different furnishings in each complex, Margraves said.

The dorms will include spaces for offices and residential programs as well. Specifically, the Residential Initiative on the Study of the Environment, or RISE, program will be housed in Bailey Hall. RISE targets students with an interest in environmental preservation and stewardship.

In addition to changes to the public spaces of the buildings, the infrastructure also will be brought up to date in terms of fire codes and other requirements, Nestle said.

In all, renovations to both buildings will cost about $35 million.

The work currently is contracted to Clark Construction Group LLC, Nestle said.

Both Bailey and Rather halls will open for student residency starting in June 2012.

Changes to dorms in Brody Complex Neighborhood and elsewhere will draw students to those locations in the future, Margraves said.

“It’s a package deal,” she said. “We know we’re on to something.”