Thursday, January 29, 1998
Delays likely in phase two of Kerckhoff’s renovation
CONSTRUCTION: Changes made in restructuring won’t mar historic
beauty
By Michael Weiner
Daily Bruin Contributor
Originally built in 1931, Kerckhoff Hall has withstood the test
of time. But it has not aged so gracefully.
Kerckhoff has undergone numerous repairs over the past few
years, some planned and some a result of the Northridge earthquake
of 1994. And more construction is on the way.
The construction project has been plagued by monetary problems,
and because of this was ultimately divided into two phases.
Originally, Kerckhoff was supposed to be completely finished by the
summer of 1996, but continuation of the second phase has been
stalled for a year, according to Mike Otavka, the students’
association (ASUCLA) facilities director.
Phase one, which included the installation of isolators under
the building to make it safe in an earthquake and the repair of the
building’s spires which were damaged in the 1994 quake, has been
completed.
"In case of an earthquake, the ground moves but the building
stays stationary," said Otavka.
Phase two of the project, which includes code and life-safety
work to make the building compliant with fire codes and the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), is scheduled to begin this
summer and be completed in the fall of 1999, according to ASUCLA
Executive Director Patricia Eastman.
"I’m not sure whether it will start this summer or not, but
that’s what the schedule says," Eastman said.
Otavka said that architectural design for phase two is currently
being worked on.
"It looks like we’re going to have some drawings to review some
time in March," Otavka said.
Phase two will include the installation of sand coil units on
floors two through six of Kerckhoff. The units will replace the old
style radiators with a central heating and air conditioning system.
Currently, only the first floor of Kerckhoff has heating and air
conditioning.
According to Sue Santon, an assistant vice chancellor working on
the project, whenever an older building undergoes construction, it
must be improved to fulfill current building codes.
"Every time we go into a building to do renovation, you have to
bring the building up to code," Santon said.
According to Eastman, Kerckhoff’s fire alarms are a primary
facet of phase two.
"Up until this project, the building still had an old fire alarm
system which was red boxes that you could pull," Eastman said.
The fire alarms were individual and did not sound an alarm
throughout the entire building. During phase two, the alarms will
be brought up to current fire safety codes which stipulate that if
any alarm is pulled, it will sound throughout the building.
In order to bring the building up to current ADA codes, student
groups on the fifth and sixth floors will be moved to lower levels
because the elevators do not reach the building’s top floors.
"We’re going to take student groups on the fifth floor and move
them down to the first floor," Otavka said.
The student groups will be replaced by ASUCLA administrative
office space. Eastman said that having office space on the fifth
and sixth floors complies with ADA codes because it is private,
rather than public space.
According to Otavka, it would not be feasible to install
elevators reaching to the fifth and sixth floors because it would
be too costly and would destroy Kerckhoff’s historical beauty. The
elevators would have to be installed on the outside of the
building.
"It’s a cost and aesthetic reason not to do that," Otavka
said.
Also, doorways throughout the building will be widened in order
to provide wheelchair access.
An issue attached to the construction on Kerckhoff was the
possible increase of the $113 per year life safety fee, which every
student pays. Revenue from this fee is being used to pay for the
construction project.
Because of rising costs, there was talk of raising the fee,
which Eastman does not advocate.
"Everyone involved in this project. We’ve got to find a way to
solve whatever problem there is without raising the fee," Eastman
said.
Santon does not believe that the fee will be raised, although
she is not sure.
"Right now there isn’t an anticipation of increasing that fee,"
Santon said.