Spring Break
Arjona, Monteith replacement building delayed by budget
Michelle Firestone
Issue date: 3/20/09 Section: News
The timeline for the Arjona-Monteith project has changed again, this time in response to a temporary hold Gov. M. Jodi Rell put on the building fund the university would ordinarily get in 2010.
The university had originally hoped to get $140 million for construction projects, but was told the state might not grant that request, said Jim Bradley, associate vice president for Architectural and Engineering Services.
"We have to take that into consideration and reorganize the program because we can't build if we don't have money," Bradley said. "We can only build as fast as we get the money."
The Arjona-Monteith replacement project is part of the UConn 2000 program, which was approved by the legislature in 1995, Bradley said. The program is a $2.3 billion, 20-year state investment, according to its official Web page.
Although the timeline for the project will change, the overall budget will stay the same, said Alexandria Roe, director of planning and program development for Architectural and Engineering Services (AES).
"We haven't changed the overall budget for the project," Roe said. "We are trying to escalate the drawings so we can start the project sooner. We're working very diligently toward that."
According to Bradley, the UConn 2000 projects are set in stone.
"The university doesn't really have control over these projects," Bradley said. "It can't change the projects."
Under this program, the Arjona and Monteith buildings will be replaced by two new classroom buildings. As a result of the hold, instead of both buildings being built at the same time, the classroom and lecture hall building, which will be located between the Center for Undergraduate Education (CUE) and the Student Union, will be built first.
"Working with the registrar's office, there was a clear determination that what they needed more was new classrooms," Bradley said.
According to Roe, the building will be built starting in October or November. The second building, which will go up on Dow Field between Hawley Armory and the Homer Babbidge Library, will be built as soon as the first is finished, she said.
The university had originally hoped to get $140 million for construction projects, but was told the state might not grant that request, said Jim Bradley, associate vice president for Architectural and Engineering Services.
"We have to take that into consideration and reorganize the program because we can't build if we don't have money," Bradley said. "We can only build as fast as we get the money."
The Arjona-Monteith replacement project is part of the UConn 2000 program, which was approved by the legislature in 1995, Bradley said. The program is a $2.3 billion, 20-year state investment, according to its official Web page.
Although the timeline for the project will change, the overall budget will stay the same, said Alexandria Roe, director of planning and program development for Architectural and Engineering Services (AES).
"We haven't changed the overall budget for the project," Roe said. "We are trying to escalate the drawings so we can start the project sooner. We're working very diligently toward that."
According to Bradley, the UConn 2000 projects are set in stone.
"The university doesn't really have control over these projects," Bradley said. "It can't change the projects."
Under this program, the Arjona and Monteith buildings will be replaced by two new classroom buildings. As a result of the hold, instead of both buildings being built at the same time, the classroom and lecture hall building, which will be located between the Center for Undergraduate Education (CUE) and the Student Union, will be built first.
"Working with the registrar's office, there was a clear determination that what they needed more was new classrooms," Bradley said.
According to Roe, the building will be built starting in October or November. The second building, which will go up on Dow Field between Hawley Armory and the Homer Babbidge Library, will be built as soon as the first is finished, she said.
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