Joint planning for GSFA, Psychology buildings on hold

Insurance companies must determine building costs for the proposed site. Officials have put joint planning for new Graduate School of Fine Arts and Psychology Department buildings on hold until negotiations with insurance companies determine the cost of building on the Asbury Church site. Administrators hope to build a Fine Arts facility at 34th and Chestnut streets to replace the church -- which was almost completely destroyed in a fire last month. After several months of renovation, the church had been set to open this August as the Charles Addams Fine Arts Building. They also want to go ahead with plans for a new Psychology Department building on the northeast corner of the streets. Discussions with an insurance company currently center on the possibility of rebuilding the Fine Arts facility at that location, and administrators are "pushing to get this done," according to Vice President for Facilities Management Art Gravina. Gravina said that although they will try to maintain the church's facade, they will have to reconstruct the rest of the building. "We won't be able to rebuild the church [as it was]," Gravina said. Planning for the GSFA and Psychology sites will occur simultaneously, taking into account each departments' different needs. "We're looking at how GSFA and Psychology can co-exist in a way that makes sense for both of them," Executive Vice President John Fry said. Several architectural firms will offer proposals to the University to look at the space "as one site," Gravina said, adding that he plans to select a firm this month. "On a site that's contiguous, we need to understand the implications of both buildings as they relate to each other," he said. "While the master plan is being formulated, the same firm will revisit the programmatic needs of psychology." The joint planning will not result in significant delays for the Psychology Department, according to School of Arts and Sciences Interim Dean Walter Wales. "We were at the point where planning at this level would have been necessary in any case," he said. "The fact that both proposed buildings will be studied at the same time? will almost certainly result in two buildings that will work together better than they would have if they had been considered independently." Psychology Department Chairperson Robert Seyfarth expressed confidence that the department would receive use of the site. "I am absolutely convinced that the University has a very strong commitment to building on that site," Seyfarth said. "I'm very encouraged." And Psychology Professor John Sabini said he was under the impression that "the site was ours." But Provost Stanley Chodorow said he could not confirm that the department would be granted that site, adding that funding for the department has not yet been identified. The Psychology Department submitted initial site proposals last month, requesting a six-story, 120,000 square foot building to be completed in the next five years. Gravina explained that the proposed site could "handle their initial space capacity." GSFA Dean Gary Hack said he hopes to save the front wall of the Asbury Church, but added it was "unlikely" that the department could create the same type of structure. For now, the GSFA will remain in its current facilities. Hack expressed disappointment that the school will be unable to expand its course offerings since the new facilities will be unavailable. And while Gravina said that the Fine Arts facility could conceivably be built in the next two to three years, Chodorow said that a Psychology facility may be farther down the road.