Construction of the new Moore Psychology building remains on schedule and is still expected to be completed by June 1999.
Moore Project Manager Jim Sharpe said the building is one-third complete and its steel frame and exterior walls will be finished by the end of April.
Sharpe said the underground electrical work is already underway, and construction of the interior walls and electrical work will begin soon.
One innovation that is already planned for the building is the addition of a magnetic resonance imager which will be housed in an underground bunker. That change was approved last month by Dean of the Faculty Edward Berger, Assistant Director of Facilities Planning Reed Bergwall said.
"We're pushing to get that done in the same timetable," Bergwall said. "We have to make a major 20-foot excavation, so it's a bit disruptive, but we're shifting some activities around to get everything done."
Bergwall, who has served in his current capacity for eight years, said the completion of a major building project on time is not unusual at the College. But it is rather unusual for a building project to actually begin construction early.
"We had to tie the utility tunnel through a sub-basement level of the building, and that forced our construction to start earlier than we might have," Bergwall said.
The Maynard Street facility will house a 225-seat underground auditorium, which will take the place of Filene Auditorium. Gerry Hall, which contains Filene, and Bradley Hall will eventually be destroyed to facilitate the College's northward expansion.
Moore will also contain many smaller classrooms, including one which will seat 80 people.
Psychology Department Chair Robert Kleck said he is "very pleased with the internal design. I am very happy to see the classroom space will be somewhat larger than Filene, which is important to us in terms of Psychology 1."
The psychology department is currently housed in both Gerry and Silsby Halls. Psychology Professor George Wolford said he is pleased the new building will eliminate the separation.
"When they separated the department they assured us we would be back together within five years, and that was over 20 years ago. We think it's essential for a department to be housed in a single place," Wolford said.
Wolford said his colleagues are enthusiastic about the plans. "Many in this department have been working for over 20 years, and to finally see it take shape is really exciting."
The building was named for Lansing Moore '37, who attended the College for one semester in 1933. In 1996, the estate of his widow, Florence Moore, gave the College $18.1 million in unrestricted funds, which will partially fund the construction.
The cost of Moore Hall is estimated to be $30 million.
"I'm confident that we'll hit budget," Bergwall said. The Pizzagalli Construction Company of Burlington, Vt., is the contractor for the project.
