LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - The University of Nebraska-Lincoln plans to raze a matching pair of high-rise dormitories that have housed thousands of students since 1963.
All 13 stories of Cather Hall and Pound Hall will be imploded and disappear from Lincoln’s skyline as early as the end of this year, the Lincoln Journal Star (https://bit.ly/2rLuqNc ) reported. Both dorms have been used for overflow in recent years as the demand for student housing exceeded expectations.
Cather Hall was reopened to students in 2013, shortly after it was taken offline. Pound Hall has been home to students in each of the last three school years.
Brooke Hay, assistant director of university’s facilities planning and construction, says the school settled on what officials say will be the quickest, safest and most cost-effective option for the buildings.
“The implosion method would shorten schedules, improve implementation means for the contractor, lower safety concerns for pedestrians around the tight site, and as a result, lower overall project costs,” Hay said in an email.
The cost of renovating the housing complex to bring it up to state and local building codes steadily grew over time. A program statement considered by the university’s Board of Regents last year said the cost solely to update Pound Hall would be nearly $23 million.
Imploding the buildings will help keep demolition costs within the $7.3 million parameter set by the Board of Regents in November.
Crews have already blocked off part of a nearby street to remove appliances, furniture and mechanical systems from the buildings as well as to excavate the foundations.
In November, demolition experts will knock over the dining hall that’s located between the high-rise dormitories. It’ll be cleared to become a landing zone for falling debris created by the implosion.
“Our goal is to complete that process later this year during the semester break,” said Sue Gildersleeve, the university’s housing director, in a statement. “However, we will wait if there are unforeseen conditions or delays in the preparation process.”
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Information from: Lincoln Journal Star, https://www.journalstar.com
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