Summer construction projects blanket campus

The installation of chilled water lines has closed Speakers Circle and several roads on campus.

By Megan Donohue

Published June 2, 2010

Decreased traffic on campus this summer will allow Campus Facilities to step up construction on several facilities and roads. The installation of chilled water lines underground, renovations to residence halls and road repairs are all slated as summer construction projects at MU.

There are 19 road closings scheduled for the summer for construction, with 13 scheduled by MU and the remaining six scheduled by the city of Columbia.

The six scheduled by the city are resurfacing projects, while none of the 13 scheduled by MU are for resurfacing issues, Campus Facilities spokeswoman Karlan Seville said.

According to several maps released by MU, Locust Street will be closed until June 8, Fifth Street until mid-June, Conley Avenue until Aug. 15, and Sixth Street until Aug. 15. These streets, in addition to Speakers Circle, will be closed to add chilled water lines underground.

"A chilled water loop is more efficient than having individual chillers at each building," Seville said. "By connecting buildings together with piping and strategically locating chiller plants, MU is able to cool over 100 buildings from just 16 locations."

A new steam tunnel will also be installed to replace the aging tunnel from the power plant to the corner of Maryland Avenue and Conley Avenue. It will be completed Aug. 1. Hitt Street, Rollins Street and Conley Avenue will be the main roads affected by the steam tunnel replacement.

"The tunnel will include new steam, condensate and compressed air piping with expansion room for future capacity," Seville said.

Manhole work will close the road in front of Defoe-Graham residence hall until June 12, according to maps released by MU.

The summer construction projects that will last the longest are the road closures due to MU Power Plant upgrades, which will close Stewart Road from Province to Fifth Street until late 2012.

Some of the work includes installing a new biomass boiler, repairing the existing north and south stacks and replacing current cooling towers and electric systems to support auxiliary loads, Seville said.

Utility lines will be laid for the Patient Care Tower off of Pershing Drive. According to the Road Closings 2010 map, the project will be completed in 2012.

The tower, which is partially funded by a $30 million bond, will replace the existing Ellis Fischel Cancer Center.

"By all accounts, it's an inadequate facility in just about every way you look at it," Bo Fraser, a member of the UM system Board of Curators, said of the existing structure.

The center will occupy the first two floors of the tower. It is slated for completion in 2013.

"The citizens of this state deserve an up-to-date cancer hospital," Fraser said.

Seville said all of the utility projects are necessary to supply reliable and efficient utilities to the campus and hospitals and MU has made sure to create the least amount of inconveniences possible.

"We communicate with faculty, staff and students to keep them aware of upcoming projects that might change their routine," Seville said. "This is the best time of year for us to close streets for long periods of time. It impacts the least amount of people."

Seville said MU is not anticipating any major problems from the road closures this summer beyond circumstances beyond control, which may add delays.

"We plan well in advance so that we do not run into problems, but you cannot predict the weather," Seville said.