Theresa Zhou '07 knew exactly when construction began near her room in Spruce House -- her desk's vibrations made it all too clear. Those vibrations will likely continue through Spring 2006, when the Thayer School of Engineering's ongoing expansion is set to be completed.
The Thayer expansion is only one of a number of large-scale campus construction projects currently underway. The other two, the McLaughlin and Tuck Mall dormitories, have proceeded relatively efficiently in recent months.
Construction at the engineering school officially began in July with the movement of utility lines from beneath the building's future location. The foundation, which will add both teaching and lab spaces to the complex, is now approximately 90 percent completed, according to College Planning Director Reed Bergwall.
While officials said the project itself has progressed smoothly, students residing nearby have had a more difficult time.
"The noise in the morning hasn't been bad," Gregg Rubin '08 said. "The jackhammering on Sunday is kind of annoying. If you shut the window you can't hear it. Then you have the conflict of it's too hot or too loud in your room."
The College is also building a replacement for the aging Gerry and Bradley halls -- the so-called "shower towers" -- near the Phi Tau coed fraternity.
The new construction does not only affect students who live nearby. Local residents initially opposed the McLaughlin cluster when the College requested a special exemption for its construction from Hanover's Zoning Board of Adjustments. Residents, especially those along Rope Ferry Road, felt that the cluster would negatively impact the character of the neighborhood and wanted the board to reject the College's proposal.
The new McLaughlin and Tuck Mall dormitories, which will together add roughly 500 beds, have now passed through Hanover's zoning and planning boards. Preliminary construction has begun on the McLaughlin cluster, and its expected completion date is Fall 2006, according to Dean of Residential Life Martin Redman.
"It will be a good three, four or maybe five months before anyone sees a structure above the height of a fence going up," Redman said.
The Tuck Mall dormitory plans are still undergoing final review for a building permit. This process, however, is a more cooperative technical procedure than the reviews conducted by the zoning or planning boards. Redman anticipates the building to be ready for a spring 2006 opening.
"Our worst case scenario is that both of them will open sometime in the 2006 academic year," Redman said.
Both dormitories will be funded by the College's latest capital campaign, officially known as the Campaign for the Dartmouth Experience. This method of financing breaks with Dartmouth's traditional reliance on mortgages, which were paid back over a 30-year period with student rent payments.
Dartmouth construction administrators have been appreciative of students' patience with the ongoing inconveniences.
"The students have been great about finding their way around and using the new concealed walkway [at the Thayer School]," Bergwall said.
