That’s the title of the the Daily Business Review article on plans for our new addition to the law school, and a makeover of much of the existing structure.
It’s a long article, including a lot of history of various rejected proposals, one of which was a brand new building on a prime site near the Metrorail that would have cost well over $100 million which we don’t have to spend. (But if you’d like to spend it for us, I suspect they’d name the law school after you.)
Here’s what the article says about plans for the next phase:
[Dean] White is planning a major overhaul of the current building, including adding more communal space for students, adding and redoing classrooms and outfitting them with state-of-the-art technology, adding a brand new courtroom for mock trials and opening a new cafe to cater to the whole school. White does not yet have a cost estimate for the remodel but has already hired top New York architectural firm Kohn Pederson Fox Associate to draw up plans. She plans to show the designs to the university’s board of trustees in September when she presents the proposal for a vote.
If approved by the board, which is expected, White estimates the renovations would take 18 months to complete, Current facilities would remain open during construction.
“We are deeply engaged in the preliminary stages of working with architects and will be making a proposal to the trustees in September,” White said. “The plans are fairly far along. The building will be an addition to a major renovation to the site of our current building.”
We’re certainly tight for space, and key parts of the physical plant are getting long in the tooth, so extension and renovation are good things — or will be when they’re over. As I’m currently experiencing remodeling of my floor of the law school (and repainting and re-carpeting of my office) — which means I can’t work there this summer — I suspect the process of getting to the finish line will be fraught.
Current facilities would remain open during construction. Sounds noisy.