By: Deja Footes, Lion’s Eye Staff Editor, dmf5475@psu.edu
Coming in August 2017, Penn State Brandywine will have two new buildings: a residence hall and a student union building.
The campus’ new residence hall will be located behind the Vairo library and the student union, an improved version of the student lounge in main, between Vairo and Tomezsko.
The residence hall will feature double bedroom suites and study lounges, along with two apartments for full-time residence staff said Stephanie Jones, associate director of student affairs. In the student union building there will be dining services, a bookstore and The Lion’s Den. The buildings will also include fireplaces for those cold winter days on campus and to provide a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere.
During the campus renovations, Penn State kept its commitment to the environment by keeping sustainability a factor in the design and construction plan. High quality stone is used for construction, including glass and light sensors that are essential energy savers. Lighting and storm water control were all terms that lead to leadership in environmental engineering when the buildings were designed. The residence hall and student union were designed with life-long durability in mind.
Safety was also a key factor in the design of the residence hall and student union. The campus will be adding four emergency blue phones. The locations will be: the fountain in front of Commons, the gazebo, the student union building and at the intersection of the main building parking lot.
The addition of residence halls means that the campus will no longer be solely a commuter campus. Because of that, changes to parking have also been taken into consideration. With the nearly 900 existing parking spots, there will be enough room for the residents and commuters on campus.
For now, construction will not disrupt classes. Penn State stickers will be given to construction workers to identify them to students, staff and faculty. Construction workers went through an orientation and have their own entrances, locations for food and restrooms so the impact on the campus community is minimal.
“Their goal is to stay out of the campus’ way as much as possible,” Bill Tyson, director of marketing and communications, who spoke to a Penn State Brandywine audience regarding the construction.
The new and improved campus will officially be done and ready for students to start moving in August 2017.
Updated by the Lion’s Eye web staff