Africana Studies and Research Center expansion continues on schedule

By Franklin Crawford

The renovation and expansion of Cornell's Africana Studies and Research Center and its library on Triphammer Road is on schedule, said Michael Wilkinson, project construction manager with the Cornell Office of Planning, Design and Construction. Faculty and staff should be able to begin moving back into the center Jan. 15. Wilkinson has posted regular reports on the project since construction began last summer.

Those reports, along with photographs of the work in progress, can be viewed at the Africana Web site, http://www.asrc.cornell.edu/. But anyone driving by the center can see the changes. The center's existing building has been renovated, and a new building to house the Africana Library as well as a multipurpose room have been added.

Relatively moderate weather and an aggressive effort on the part of contractors and subcontractors have kept the project on schedule, Wilkinson said.

"The contractor is currently working 10 hours a day Monday through Saturday, and some key trades have worked the past two Sundays," Wilkinson stated in his latest report. "We also will be starting a second shift this week consisting of painters, tapers and drywallers, now that the addition is weather tight."

The principal architect for the project is Ralph T. Jackson with the Boston-based firm of Shepley Bulfinch Richardson and Abbott. The firm integrated suggestions from the Africana faculty, staff and students in designing a building that meets program needs and captures the essence of Africana cultures and aesthetics. This is evident now in the exterior brickwork of the new buildings.

Work on the renovation of the existing building was started earlier in the summer. Windows are being replaced throughout the building, an elevator installed, and men's and women's bathrooms located on each floor. A seminar room, classroom and faculty/graduate student lounges are being created in the former library in the basement. The first floor is being renovated to include faculty and administrative offices and a classroom. The second floor is devoted to faculty offices.