By BRETT SWIGER
Students are finding themselves surrounded by chain-linked fences, cranes, dirt piles and half-demolished buildings as a large part of BYU gets an extensive face-lift.
With so many different types of renovation happening on campus, each project has a different time schedule. Major renovations began in May 1995 and are planned to conclude in the summer of 1998.
Current construction projects and their construction dates:
*J. Reuben Clark Law Building (May 1995 to Nov. 1996)
*Eyring Science Center (Aug. 1995 to Oct. 1997)
*Wilkinson Center (Nov. 1995 to Apr. 1998)
*George Albert Smith Field House (Mar. 1995 to Mar. 1996)
Future construction projects will affect:
*Harold B. Lee Library (Summer 1996 to the end of 1998)
*Wyview Trailer Park (Summer 1996 to Summer 1999)
The J. Reuben Clark Law Building is receiving an additional library wing and a seismic upgrade.
In the heart of campus, the Eyring Science Center was gutted to remove asbestos and to rebuild the entire building interior.
After a year of construction, the Smith Fieldhouse will be finished by the beginning of March.
'We remodeled the football locker room, adding more lockers and more room for sports medicine,' said Jim Beagles, project coordinator.
Some of the most extensive renovations are taking place in the Wilkinson Center. The Games Center has been torn down and will be the new home of Outdoors Unlimited.
The University Station Post Office, previously located on the first floor of the Wilkinson Center, is also undergoing work to update the facilities, replace the counters and doors, and to provide for better wheelchair access.
The Cougareat will be moved in June 1996 to 265 ELWC for one year while the current Cougareat location is transformed into a new food court.
'We're looking forward to the new Cougareat, which will be similar to the food courts that you see in malls,' said Paul Johnson, BYU Dining Services assistant director.
The Harold B. Lee Library will receive two additional underground floors, extending north underneath the ASB quad. The ASB quad will be excavated beginning this summer.
As construction begins in the ASB quad, pedestrian access will be limited to the sidewalk on the east side of the Jesse Knight Humanities Building and the ASB patio. All other walkways in the ASB quad will be closed.
'I'm sure that renovations will continue beyond the current projects,' explained Mike Stratton, BYU Construction Center manager.
In the meantime, construction on campus will continue to be a part of student life -- at least for the next three years