McDavid, Hatch finish renovations
Published Aug. 21, 2007
Renovations to the McDavid and Hatch residence halls are complete, and students calling the halls home this semester will have the opportunity to enjoy updated and improved facilities, as well as a fresh look.
Residential Life Director Frankie Minor said students living in the renovated halls will not only enjoy improvements in air conditioning and community bathrooms but also a lighter and more engaging atmosphere.
"What students have responded very positively to is that the buildings are brighter and much more vibrant," Minor said.
Minor said the improvements were made to McDavid and Hatch - erected in 1956 and 1962, respectively - mostly out of consciousness for improved accessibility and adherence to current fire safety codes. Students previously living in the halls made suggestions for possible improvements through focus groups and town-hall-style meetings.
Minor said the improvements were made not only to satisfy the needs of current students but also those of students in the years to come.
Minor said estimates on the final price tag of the two halls are still tentative to further improvements, but that improvements to McDavid might cost about $6 million and Hatch approximately $18 million.
Both halls have done away with balconies in the common areas and opted for large windows, which, Minor said, offers more natural light and better accessibility.
Individual rooms in both halls are secured with a lock that can only be opened with a pin number, which residents can obtain at kiosks set up in the lobbies. The rooms are outfitted with new air conditioning units with personal thermostats that are more energy efficient than older units and don't need to be hung out of windows. They are furnished with new chairs, desks and beds, as well as wood-grain-patterned vinyl flooring.
Nick Woodbury, student peer advisor at the new Hatch residence hall and former resident of Gillett Hall, said he is pleased that the renovated Hatch has maintained a community atmosphere common to the residence halls while flashing a sleek new look.
"I like the fact it's like Gillett and Hudson, but it's more updated," Woodbury said.
McDavid, home to the Fine Arts residential community, has added a radio station free for use by its residents, an office for a magazine called Purple that covers the goings-on of the residence hall and an art gallery to which residents can submit works to be considered for display. An art studio, complete with a pottery room just down the hall from the gallery, allows would-be artists to perfect their work. The residence hall has also shied away from the traditional computer lab setup and instead offers a laptop rental service to its residents.
Matt Davis, peer adviser at McDavid, said the improvements create an environment that is conducive to artistic freedom.
"There's so much here to help us as artists," Davis said. "I think it fosters a unique experience for fine arts."
The renovation of the residence halls is the second portion of a five-phase plan by Residential Life, approved by the Board of Curators in 2001, to revamp its on-campus living facilities.
Also included in the second phase is the renovation of Schurz residence hall, set to be completed by the fall semester of 2008, and improvements made to Defoe and Graham residence halls, set to begin in the winter semester of 2008.