Nick Crenshaw ’20 / The bonnet
by Gabriella Pisano ’18
News worker
While Providence College’s campus transformation is in full swing, changes have been made to the left and right around the campus. With the addition and renovation of academic buildings and the incorporation of Huxley Avenue, few parts of the campus appear to have remained unchanged. However, few significant changes have been made to dorm buildings in recent years – but this may not be the case anytime soon.
Plans are underway to renovate the second oldest building on the Providence College campus: Aquinas Hall. Originally made in January 2016, the proposal aims to redesign Aquinas with a projected price of $ 30 million.
When Aquinas Hall was first built, it was not just a dormitory building, but also included a dining room, lounge, work lounge, and chapel. At one point, DWC courses were held in Aquin to prove that the hall was multifunctional. Warren Gray, vice president of economics, said, “The building is in the middle of the campus. It’s a beautiful building, and historically, housing is the right use for it. “Gray added,” The age of the building means that renovations will require guttings from the building. “
Possible changes to the building include new window systems, touching up and repairing the building envelope, adding air conditioning, replacing the bathroom, and other internal fixes. If changes are made, the number of dorms in the building is likely to decrease.
There are currently four preliminary plans for renovation of buildings. While the number of beds lost is different for the four possible changes, Gray stated, “The goal is to improve the building while minimizing the loss of beds.”
While the number of dorms is decreasing, there are no plans to change the size of the current rooms. However, the few suite-like double rooms with en-suite bathrooms may be reconfigured.
One of the changes that Aquinas students will appreciate is the addition of air conditioning. Aquinas dormitory temperature has historically been an issue for some students. Camille Greaney ’19 from Aquinas said: “In summer it is very hot and sometimes in winter, when it is a nice day, the room is too hot because the heating does not turn on well.”
There is currently no air conditioning in the building, but air treatment and heat. These systems are buried in the walls and require work on them. In addition to the air conditioning, a telecommunications room will be added to improve the WiFi in the building.
Nick Crenshaw ’20 / The bonnet
A big part of the renovation will be bathroom updates. Sam Redmond ’19, a resident of the current Aquinas bathroom, said, “The showers in the bathroom are always flooding and sometimes the lights don’t work.” Not only are these bathrooms being updated, but handicapped accessible bathrooms are being added. The building is currently designed with two wings on either side, one for boys and one for girls. Thanks to the new guest bathrooms, guests of the opposite sex have easier access to the bathrooms.
While the number of beds in the building is decreasing, there is little concern about running out of beds. “Aquin can accommodate a maximum of 344 students. The occupancy changes during the year, but this year we opened with six open beds in Aquin, ”said Jana Valentine, Director of Residence Life. “I would expect Aquinas to remain a sophomore student residence but that could change during the planning phase.”
Unlike renovations to other buildings on campus, dorm buildings need to be approached with greater planning as students will have to live in the buildings during the academic year. There are currently options to complete the project over a period of one, two or three years. Everyone reserves the summer for larger projects that require the building to be empty. PC used this time last summer and replaced Aquin’s roof.
The schedule for these upgrades is not yet known, but students can expect more information in the near future as the plans become more specific. Although the changes to be made are not yet set in stone, project staff aim to update certain aspects of the building to improve the living conditions of the students in the Hall of Aquinas.
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