MVR relocation proceeds with creativity and spirit

Administrative assistants in Policy Analysis and Management -- from left, Justine Lynge, Bonita Carrigan and Danielle Dean -- who were displaced from the north wing of Martha Van Rennselaer Hall, have settled into their new office space in Room 117 of the building's east wing. Richard Killen/University Photography

By Susan Lang

When the north wing of Martha Van Rensselaer Hall (MVR) closed July 13 due to recently determined structural problems, all the occupants of the wing had to be relocated. Many were moved into the older wing, thereby displacing many occupants there. All told, about 40 percent of the faculty and staff of the College of Human Ecology has been, or is in the process of being, moved.

"At this point, we are confident that almost everyone will be settled by Aug. 20, before the new semester begins," said S. Kay Obendorf, associate dean for research and facilities for the college. "Although everyone either went into another office in the old wing of MVR or to a space in the old Mann Library, we have yet, however, to determine where Media Services' TV studio or the woodshop for the Department of Design and Environmental Analysis will go. We're still working on that."

To accommodate the more than 150 faculty and staff who had to move to new offices, the planners used available space creatively. The CIT Public Computing Lab in MVR has been relocated to the original Mann Building and the former space is being used as a shared office space for several staff members. In the Mann Building emeritus professors share the McCay reading room while the Family Life Development Center staff use the second floor in the catalog and reserve areas. For several weeks, one staff member put all her files in her van so she could retrieve them as she needed.

"This has been a gigantic undertaking, but we've been extremely pleased in the support services that have come together to make all the moves possible in a very short period of time, and the community spirit of the college is just terrific," Obendorf said.

She said that several dozen of the college's classes have been relocated to other buildings across campus, but none would be cancelled as a result of the closing of the MVR wing. In the meantime, the wing is still being emptied of its contents.

"Once we have the offices, classes and labs relocated, we next have to figure out our next relocation step, as there are spaces in the Mann Building that are due to be renovated next year," Obendorf said.

The closing was prompted by the discovery and subsequent analysis by outside experts of cracks in the north wing of the building's concrete floor slabs. A feasibility study, contracted by the State University Construction Fund, is planned to determine what remedial action needs to be taken. Work on the building, which houses a portion of the College of Human Ecology, is expected to last at least a year.