The first week of the Spring semester started with a ‘bang’ as the construction of the “Luter 2” Science and Engineering Research Center caused disruptions to classes in the Luter and Forbes buildings, being felt by residents throughout the Santoro and James River residence halls, even being felt as far as the Greek Village.
CNU students were warned in advance by Jim Hanchett, Chief of Communication, who sent an email communicating the potential disruption. This email, to the entire CNU community, alerted those who may be affected that a “heavy weight” would be repeatedly dropped on the ground. The purpose of the weight was to “increase soil compaction and bearing strength” of the ground before construction begins, the email said.
Students have expressed concern about class disruption with the “heavy weight” vibration making it hard to focus. Sophomore Claire Hall said her Economics class in Luter 242 was interrupted several times due to the apparent shaking of the classroom which caused students to be distracted. “It sounded like someone was dropping heavy weights on the ceiling, and the walls and the floor were shaking,” Hall said. She also mentioned that it was difficult to write neatly when taking notes and hard to focus on the slides with the shakes even affecting the room’s projector.
Many other students in Luter complained about the disruptive shaking, but Luter was not the only academic building affected. Junior and psychology major Kat Dougherty said, “Some professors went on with class like nothing happened, but others were repeatedly interrupted by the shaking and the projector getting messed up.”
Students in classes were not the only ones affected by the construction. As previously mentioned residents of the James River and Santoro residence halls reported disruption to their sleep, as construction began early in the morning. Junior Maggie Gammons who lives in the Alpha Sigma Alpha mansion said, “Around 9:00 AM I kept feeling jolts and thought it was people slamming the door, or the wind.”
Hanchett went on to say that the repeated dropping of weight is scheduled to be completed by Fri. Jan. 19 at the latest, “Unless weather interferes.” The email also provided a link to a live stream where the construction can be watched remotely on YouTube.
