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Greenlawn set for demolition, Northside Hall scheduled for major renovations
By: RYAN LOHMAN
Staff Writer
ryanlohman@gmail.com
Greenlawn Hall will be demolished, possibly as early as late April, according to Chancellor Terry Allison’s remarks at a recent Student Government Association meeting.
Vice Chancellor of Fiscal Affairs William O’Donnell confirmed the demolition and said the job will be awarded to a contractor within the next few weeks.
IU South Bend included funds for the demolition of Greenlawn Hall in its budget for the construction of the Education and Arts Building, which was completed in 2013. Besides its use as storage, Greenlawn has been vacant since the School of Education moved to the new building.
The delay in demolition, O’Donnell said, was due to the need for additional temporary office space during the renovation of the Administration Building. With that renovation complete and other temporary office space available on campus, no more roadblocks exist to Greenlawn’s demolition.
Although the space Greenlawn Hall occupies will initially become a part of the mall, O’Donnell said it does represent a possible building site for the future. He said no plans currently exist for a new building, but the natural aesthetic of the mall would take precedence if one were to be constructed in the future.
“I’ve seen pictures from when the mall was fairly new. The trees were very small. Now we have this incredible canopy created by the trees,” he said. “We would never want to infringe on the beauty of the mall. If it were to be a building site, it would be further east, where the doors are, going into Northside.”
The university is also taking bids for renovations planned for Northside Hall, O’Donnell said. That building was recently the focus of an assessment that identified multiple areas for improvements and updates.
$4.25 million has already been allocated by the state legislature for renovations. An additional $11 million has been requested.
The renovation of Northside Hall will be a long term project, done in phases, which could take as long as 10 years to complete. O’Donnell estimated the entire renovation would cost more than $40 million.
With $4.25 million already secured for the project, the first phase could begin as soon as next year.
“Everyone involved agrees that the first priority is to make sure Northside is sound and secure, fixing roofs, windows, making sure it’s sealed and in good shape,” he said.
No start date has been announced for the Northside Hall renovations.
I always wished we could have a giant food fight or nerf war or paintball war in Greenlawn before they demolished it. It would’ve been so much fun and no one would’ve had to clean it all up.