Repairs to new Women's Center site may cost over $1 million

After a year of discussion, debate and delay on the future of the Penn Women's Center, University President Judith Rodin announced earlier this week that she will continue with plans to move the Women's Center into the former Theta Xi fraternity house, located at 3643 Locust Walk. But more than $1 million in damages to the facility -- now termed Locust House -- will force the organization to wait until August 1996 before moving, University officials said. Vice President of Facilities Management Arthur Gravina said the damages result primarily from "neglect" of the building since the Theta Xi fraternity vacated it in 1992. "The building is damaged and the cost is much larger than it was originally," Penn Women's Center Director Elena DiLapi said. Valarie Swain-Cade McCoullum, acting vice provost for University life, said she is worried about the extent of damage to the building. Despite the timetable and cost of the project, Rodin said she was pleased with the location. "I look forward to them offering a wide array of programs and services at the new location that will benefit the entire Penn community," she said. The substantial repairs required on Locust House led Rodin to consider other options -- such as using space in the Mellon Bank Building -- for the Center. This review caused increased delays in the decision-making process, Rodin said. DiLapi said Rodin's confirmation was "very encouraging" after the Women's Center board and "others in the community" expressed concern with delays in the Center's relocation. DiLapi said the move is a step in diversifying the Walk while providing the Women's Center with a larger, more central location on campus. "Because of who we are, what we do and who we serve, I believe that we will be an important addition to the whole process of diversifying Locust Walk," she said. In addition, DiLapi said the Women's Center, currently located on the first floor of Houston Hall, has operated in an "incredibly small space with short resources." "It would be nice to have a place where we could just hang out," she said. "Our space to do that now is quite hindered." When the Women's Center finally moves into Locust House, it will fill the west half of the first floor and the office space on the second. Its co-tenant has not yet been determined. "We strongly encourage that the co-tenant be something that supports and enhances the mission of the Women's Center," DiLapi said. "The [Women's Center] board is really concerned that issues of confidentiality and safety for women be built into that structure." When McCoullum announced last February that the Women's Center would be moving to Locust House, debate and controversy ensued. At the time, some students expressed concern about the "political agenda" of the Women's Center, saying that many might be uncomfortable or intimidated by its new, more central location.