Construction at Morrow Library halted temporarily

Renovations to the James E. Morrow Library are now on hold, and work in the Cam Henderson Center's Big Green Room has been delayed, Physical Plant Director Dale Allman said.

Work on these continuing projects stops and starts so the crew can complete other, more urgent projects, he said.

"I'm not saying it's secondary," Allman said, "but other things crop up such as offices for faculty and classrooms."

He said a lack of funding has little to do with stopping work on these projects, adding he did not know when either would be completed. Reconstruction in the Big Green Room will not be finished before the upcoming basketball season, Allman said.

Remodeling in the room began again Thursday, but workers could be pulled out at any time, Allman said.

The work in the Morrow Library will probably resume sometime this semester, he said.

"We're waiting for some final drawings to be completed by the architect," Allman said.

Although the first floor of the Morrow Library originally was to be remodeled for administrative offices, including the presidential complex, that is no longer the case, Allman said. Future occupancy of the first floor of Morrow Library is undecided at this point, he said.

The second floor is being remodeled for Special Collections.

Construction in the Morrow Library began in February and $90,000 has been spent on the renovations there so far, Allman said. Some interior partitions have been demolished, and some old lighting and carpeting has been removed on the first and second floors, he said.

The next important step in the Morrow Library renovation is upgrading the HVAC, the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system, Allman said.

Future construction will include changes to the walls, ceilings and electrical and mechanical systems ­ "just about everything," Allman said.

The Big Green Room's reconstruction began this spring with a limited crew. Some walls have been built under the north section of bleachers. The crew has also worked on the air conditioning, duct layout and plumbing. These renovations cost about $50,000.

Still to be completed are the wall and ceiling systems, doors and bathroom fixtures, Allman said.

A new $25,000 sound system was also added to the basketball stadium this summer, Dr. K. Edward Grose, senior vice president of operations, said.

Neither project has been contracted out. Marshall employees from the Physical Plant are doing all the work, Allman said.