After roughly a year of work, the noise and dust emanating from behind Haldeman and Kemeny Halls will disappear as the landscaping project enters its final stages. Barring unforeseen delays, the landscaping will be completed within the next week, according to Bill Kitchel, project manager for the Office of Planning, Design and Construction.
"The bulk of the work is 99.9 percent complete," Kitchel said.
Original outlines for the landscaping project included an amphitheater situated behind Novack Cafe but as planning and construction continued the planned terraced arrangement was replaced by a rounded bowl, according to Kitchel.
"It changed in design from being a formal and pronounced amphitheater," Kitchel said. "Over time the design took those terraces out and it became a gentle bowl. Trimming things out is a part of every project."
The design of the amphitheater changed for both cost and maintenance issues, Kitchel said. Constructing detailed steps would add costs, and Facilities Operations and Management expressed some concerns about the difficulty of mowing lawns located on separate levels, he said.
The rounded bowl still features a central point at its bottom where outdoor classes can be held, the original purpose of the design, Kitchel said. Microphone and wireless systems were added to allow professors to bring classes outdoors on nice days, according to Kitchel.
"One could hold a function there," Kitchel said. "We could get quite a few people there."
The project is finishing on budget at $2.4 million, according to Kitchel.
The landscape completion marks the final major renovation of the area stretching from the north end of Berry Library to the McLaughlin Residential Cluster. The construction on Kemeny and Haldeman as well as McLaughlin began in 2004, and the Bradley and Gerry buildings were demolished in December 2006, following the completion of Kemeny and Haldeman.
"It's been a long process," Kitchel said, "but we're finally pulling out of that area."
The College sought to establish Baker-Berry as the heart of the campus by expanding north towards Dartmouth Medical School, according to Jack Wilson, associate director of the OPDC. Previously, a medical center existed where McLaughlin currently stands, making the library the north end of the campus, Wilson added.
The project next to Novack was not meant to detract from the Green's role as the center landscape of the College, Wilson said. While the Green is flat and good for recreational use, the new amphitheater has more of an academic setting because of its location near Kemeny and Haldeman and the library, he explained.
"We weren't trying to replicate the Green," Wilson said. "We were trying to create a space where people feel comfortable. The Green and Baker Lawn are one kind of open space and this is another kind. The Green will always be a gathering place and it's the main place to see and be seen."
The soon-to-be-completed landscaping project was originally scheduled to be finished by fall 2007, but because of the quick onset of winter this year, the College had to wait until spring to finish planting, Kitchel said. Some of the trees that were planted before winter did not survive and had to be replanted, he added.
The firm Moore, Ruble and Yudell was responsible for the majority of the planning of the projects in the area from Berry to McLaughlin.
