U. to earmark $2.2 million for athletic facilities

Physical Plant plans toPhysical Plant plans toupgrade and repair thePhysical Plant plans toupgrade and repair thePalestra, WeightmanPhysical Plant plans toupgrade and repair thePalestra, WeightmanHall and Hutch Gym. University officials plan to spend approximately $2.2 million over the next five years for renovating athletics buildings. Targeted facilities include Weightman Hall, the Palestra and Hutchinson Gymnasium. Contract Maintenance Director Bob McKain said Physical Plant -- the department responsible for maintenance and development of University facilities -- has earmarked $800,000 for fixing the trouble-plagued Hutch pool's steel structure. The pool, which recently reopened after closing August 15 due to chlorine and water leakage problems, will shut down again next summer. Even so, Associate Director of Athletic Facilities Larry Lauchle said the pool's current filtering system is more than adequate for this year. "It's an old system, but it's still an excellent system," Lauchle said, adding that officials are "looking at different solutions to the problem." According to Contract Maintenance Project Manager Bill Wilkinson, the University will spend $1 million to renovate Weightman Hall's exterior and repaint and seal cracks inside the building. Wilkinson said the designers of Weightman Hall used relatively untested techniques in constructing the 1894 building. Unfortunately, the building's structure offered little protection from water in the long term. "The steel structure was somewhat of a novelty," Wilkinson said. "When these were built, the architects and engineers were still experimenting." But water caused rust and cracks. If the decay reaches a certain level, Wilkinson said, it could increase exponentially, resulting in "consequences to the fundamental structure of the building." Wilkinson explained that Physical Plant recently spent $85,000 renovating Weightman Hall's north tower, which was deteriorating at a faster rate than other parts of the building. "We really had to deal with that immediately or run the risk that you begin to damage the interior," he said. "If we let it go any longer, the consequences could have been catastrophic. If you don't attack the exterior in a timely fashion, you also run the increased risk that you lose the whole of the building or some portion of it." Lauchle said Physical Plant is close to securing money for a new electrical generator for Weightman Hall. The lack of electricity has been an ongoing difficulty for Franklin Field and Weightman Hall. "Physical Plant's been working very aggressively to try to get the electricity that's needed," Lauchle said, noting that the department has already received bids. As for the Palestra, Physical Plant plans to replace the exterior doors -- the same doors that remain from when the facility opened in 1927 -- to the tune of roughly $400,000. Although Physical Plant documents indicate that the funds are budgeted for 2000-01, McKain said the new doors should be in place well before that time. "We're trying to find a suitable vendor," McKain said, adding that the renovations are "probably going to happen some time next year." Lauchle said he is pleased the Palestra doors will finally be replaced. "It's been on the deferred maintenance list for a considerable amount of time, and it's nice that they're looking into it again," Lauchle said. Wilkinson emphasized that all the renovations are part of a five-year deferred maintenance plan that includes many other University buildings and are therefore subject to some changes.