Following Commencement in May, the university launched a range of construction and renovation projects to bring needed upgrades to facilities on campus.
While the construction of Founders Hall and IQ2 in the new Innovation Quad is the most high-profile building project currently underway on Elon’s campus, crews are hard at work elsewhere on campus on a range of project to upgrade existing facilities.
The extended renovation of Moseley Center is continuing this summer, with extensive changes now underway on the student center’s second floor to improve navigation and create upgraded offices and meeting spaces. Elon’s upgrades to residence halls continues this summer as well, with Smith Hall the next facility in the university’s Historic Neighborhood to be renovated.
“Summer is always a busy time on campus as we dive into a new list of construction and renovation projects,” said Brad Moore, university architect and director of planning, design and construction management.
Moseley Center
For the past three or four years, the university has been tackling phased renovation projects within Moseley Center, and this summer is moving upstairs with significant changes to the second floor, according to Moore. Along with upgrades to existing spaces, such as the offices for the Center for Leadership, Student Involvement, the Gender & LGBTQIA Center and the Kernodle Center for Civic Life, the renovation is creating new collaboration spaces and promoting easier navigation.
“The beauty of this project is that it really tries to take what is now a maze and make it more user-friendly in terms of circulation and wayfinding,” Moore said. “We’re trying to simplify it.”
Central to the second floor will be a new student hub with seating and open meeting spaces. “Off of that hub, there are very clear, straight circulations that would take you back to other parts of the building,” Moore said. “You’re not going to get lost there any longer.”
Smith Hall
During recent summers, Elon has renovated a number of Historic Neighborhood residence halls, including West, Sloan and Virginia. This year, the focus is on Smith Hall, which is receiving new windows, a new ADA accessible ramp and new ADA accessible dorm rooms.
The building will receive additional ventilation and rooms will have updated finishes and furniture. The biggest change is in the bathrooms, which will move from multi-user bathrooms to pods with individual bathing compartments, Moore said.
Crews are also beginning work on Carolina Hall by replacing windows and updating electrical service as a first phase in the full renovation that will take place next summer.
Part of the challenge with summer construction projects is the tight timeframe in which the projects must be completed, with work beginning immediately after commencement in May with a completion date in early August, Moore said. “We’re trying to get as much done this summer to make sure next summer’s projects go smoothly,” he said.
Additional Projects
A number of smaller projects are scheduled to be completed this summer as well.
- Additional parking spaces are being added between the Colonnades parking area and the new Innovation Quad parking lot completed this year.
- With funding from SGA, an outdoor gym is being added to an area on the old Elon Elementary School property, and more Adirondacks, chairs and umbrellas are being added around campus.
- Features are being added to areas that had been used as temporary outdoor classrooms during last academic year to make them more permanent learning spaces. A masonry wall is being added to Belk Theater in the Lambert Academic Village that can be written on when the outdoor classroom is in use. Outdoor seating is also being added outside the Center for the Arts to create an area that can be used for outdoor learning. Additionally, the existing barn at Loy Farm is being upgraded with concrete floors and better entryways to allow that to be used as a classroom space.