Despite weather-related delays in December and January, construction on the Kappa Delta sorority house remains on schedule, its frame standing three stories tall amidst the snowdrifts on Occom Ridge. Sorority members should be able to tour the house within a month, and the project should be completed by July, said senior project manager Joe Broemel.
Low temperatures hindered the team’s ability to work with concrete, but they didn’t impact the project’s time frame, Broemel said. The construction team was ahead of schedule with its work on the parking lot and the storm sewer system when the delays began.
“Anytime you do construction in the winter, you lose productivity, but I don’t think at this point it’s anything we’re concerned about,” he said.
Seven months have passed since the College’s trustees approved the $3.5 million construction project for a new 23-bed house. The project has remained within its budget, said director of residential operations Woody Eckels.
The house’s frame has reached its intended height, and the contractors are currently finishing the exterior frame and weatherproofing the roof, Broemel said. No windows have been installed yet, but contractors have sealed the house, protecting it from inclement weather.
Tests on the building’s roofing and framing have met or exceeded expectations, Hanover building inspector Ryan Borkowski said. Along with his assistant, Borkowski said he has overseen and inspected the building materials and structure and found them to be of good quality.
Plumbing is expected to be installed soon, Borkowski said.
In the coming weeks, KD members may be able to tour completed areas of the house under supervision, Broemel said. Members of the sorority currently reside on the top floor of Hitchcock Hall. In 2010, KD became the most recent sorority to receive College recognition.
Sorority members say they are excited to have a house, and KD members from the Class of 2015 and the Class of 2016 are looking forward to using the house in the fall, KD president Alison Levens ’14 said.
The building plans for KD’s new house resemble those used for Alpha Phi sorority’s plant, completed in 2012.
On Jan. 31, the A Phi house suffered water damage, forcing residents to find temporary housing. Borkowski said there is no reason to be concerned about a similar incident at the KD house.
Hanover Fire Inspector Jeryl Frankenfield confirmed that the water damage at the A Phi house resulted from a clog in the pipes and not from defective parts.
Early in the process, construction noise was also identified as a potential problem. In order to preempt noise complaints, Broemel said he sends a biweekly newsletter to the sororities, fraternities and Occom Ridge residents with construction updates and special notices about activities that might be louder than usual.
Construction noise at the property line is limited from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, with special consideration given to exam periods, the Valley News reported.
There have been very few complaints regarding noise, Eckels said.
In the beginning of the summer, when construction began, Eckels discussed the construction with presidents with the presidents of nearby Greek houses, Broemel said.
Eckels said he has not received many complaints from residents of the surrounding houses. KD is located between Delta Delta Delta sorority, Epsilon Kappa Theta sorority and Alpha Chi Alpha fraternity.
Tri-Delt sorority president Claire Stewart ’14 said she was not aware of formal complaints from members of her organization regarding the construction. She said members of her sorority are excited for KD to join them on Occom Ridge.
