School Spends Millions

Returning students will notice many improvements to the LSC campus this fall.

The largest project was the renovation of the Stonehenge parking lot, according to Tom Archer, director of the Physical Plant. The parking lot was completely torn up and replaced, and new LED lighting was installed. All outdoor lights on campus are now LEDs, Archer said, and he added that they use two-thirds fewer kilowatts than the previous lights.

An innovative aspect of the project was the installation of rain gardens, Archer said. The gardens, located next to and across the street from the parking lot, are designed to catch water that runs off the pavement. Archer said that as more areas become paved, water is unable to soak into the ground and instead runs off into rivers, causing them to rise and contributing to flooding. The rain gardens will catch water in a natural way and help reduce this problem.

In addition to the parking lot project, a new skate park and a basketball court are being installed on the opposite side of Lower Campus Drive. These are expected to be completed before the end of September, Archer said. According to an email sent by the Physical Plant, the basketball court has the potential to double as an ice skating rink in the winter.

The Stonehenge project was contracted for a little over $1.3 million, but total costs will likely be around $1.5 million, funded through a bond, said Wayne Hamilton, Dean of Administration.

A new elevator was installed next to the Activities building this summer. The elevator connects to the second floor of the Electronic Journalism Arts Department.  The elevator project is estimated to have a total cost of $400,000. Other projects include a new basement entrance on the north side of the Harvey Academic Center (HAC), refinishing of the floors in the Stannard and Bole gyms, repaving of the walkways near Wheelock, HAC, and Vail, and removal of a path next to the library pond. Archer said that the bathrooms in Arnold were renovated as part of an ongoing project, and half of the buildings in the Stonehenge Complex now have new bathrooms. He added that the Gray House was repainted and received new flooring.

The elevator project and the Stonehenge project were paid for through a bond that LSC will be paying off over the next twenty years with money from the school's operating budget.

The HAC project and gym upgrades were paid for with state money, Hamilton said. He added that the college receives state money for capital projects each year, and this money is used mostly for academic and administrative buildings. The HAC project cost about $110,000. $100,000 is being split between the gym flooring and a new stage floor for the theater, which is expected to be installed over the winter break, Hamilton said. The dorm upgrades were paid for in part with student residence hall fees.   

Other less visible projects include the steam lines to the dining hall, which were replaced this summer after they began leaking.

"People say ‘Where's all the money?' You don't see the heat, but it comes from somewhere," Archer said.