Students returning to Washington University this fall will find a number of changes on campus, due to both completed and ongoing construction projects. One new building, Green Hall, is almost complete. Renovation projects have been completed on several buildings, and the University has started to renovate Umrath Hall.

Umrath Hall
Umrath Hall, which is located adjacent to the Mallinckrodt Center, usually houses the Campus Y, the undergraduate deans, and the Undergraduate Research Office. It will be under renovation for most of the 2011-2012 school year.
According to Art Ackermann, associate vice chancellor for Facilities Planning & Management, Umrath was originally built as a dormitory. The university is renovating it to make the rooms more suitable to serve as office space and classrooms.
The renovations to Umrath have been especially complex because the roof had to be removed to reconstruct the building in a more stable way.
According to Ackermann, most of the heavy demolition was completed over the summer, so the project is mostly contained.
The offices usually housed in Umrath have been moved to other buildings on campus.
The renovations to Umrath Hall will not be finished until the end of the school year and move-in to the building is currently scheduled to take place after graduation.

Green Hall
Despite a delay on stonework that was caused by a mason’s strike this summer, Green Hall will be completed in time for its dedication on Sept. 23.
Although the exterior of the new building will not be complete for another two to three weeks, move-in started this week.
Green Hall, which is the newest addition to campus, is located on the northeast corner of campus. It will provide space for the Department of Electrical & Systems Engineering and house the International Center for Advanced Renewable Energy and Sustainability (I-CARES).

Cupples II
The University completed construction on Cupples II this summer. The building now features a completely renovated interior and will house the College of Arts and Sciences, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the Office of Undergraduate Research.
According to Ackermann, the original space, which was about 100 years old, was not well suited to classroom space.
“We tried to make the building as functional for modern education as possible, given the fact that it is a hundred-year-old building,” said Ackermann.
The third floor of Cupples II now has a wide hallway with natural light and strip lighting that will allow students to showcase posters or art.

Mallinckrodt
Due to renovations, the Mallinckrodt Center now has a new entrance. It also boasts new Subway and Bank of America locations. The newly renovated Campus bookstore is still located on the building’s ground floor, and three classrooms are now on the second floor.
“I’m particularly excited to see how people will receive Mallinckrodt because it’s pretty interesting, the changes there,” Ackermann said. “We’re anxious always to get some feedback on what we did.”
Ackermann says he hopes that students will take the time to check out the completed renovations.
Louderman 458 also received a complete makeover.