Unearthing a Problem

by Dave Fuller

Photo by Nicholas Morgan

Beautiful green maple and oak trees and elegantly trimmed bushes typically greet Adelphi students at the beginning of a new fall semester. This year the landscape is radically different. Instead of the garden-esque landscape, there are orange fences, humongous utility pipes, excavated and exposed earth and heavy machinery. No this is not an archeological dig, but a large construction project.

Adelphi University is undertaking several major renovation projects this year. The first is improving and updating the power grid which is responsible for past blackouts. The second is a total reconstruction of water and natural gas pipes on campus. This work on the pipe systems is why there is so much excavation on campus.

Bob Shipley, manager of the Facilities Department, said the work on the pipes was necessary. The current piping has had problems in the past. This system is the original piping installed on campus. "The current system is original to the campus and is prone to leaks and failures," commented Shipley. These past failures and leakages caused many annoyances for residential and academic buildings in the past. These failures also cost the school a considerable sum of money and time.

The new piping system promises to save on natural gas efficiency while providing warm water to all buildings on the campus. The project will start by Woodruff Hall and end by Eddy Hall. Shipley stated, "By next year we will have new pipe in the ground to Eddy Hall. All of the dorms and academic buildings will be hooked up to this system. This will allow the university to save substantially on our natural gas usage."

Work on this project started at Woodruff hall, where the pipes extend to their farthest point on campus. Much of the surrounding parking lot and the area by the tennis courts have also been excavated. The excavations extend to areas between The University Center and Levemore Hall. The ground is also being dug up in the area between Waldo Hall, Earle Hall, Blogett Hall, and the science building. Areas by The Hagedorn Hall of Enterprise are also under excavation.

The trenches have to remain open for a substantial period because the work is time consuming and Adelphi has to hire an outside contractor to do the work. The piping system must be tested before the project is finished, thus lengthening the project. Bob Shipley gave a rough estimate of several weeks before the seven foot trenches can be closed. Bright orange fences have been placed to keep the public out of the work sites. "The excavation work that is going on is probably the most crucial aspect of the project from a public safety stand point," noted Shipley.

In the meantime, these trenches significantly reduced the number of parking spaces on campus creating traffic problems to a growing campus. Also, several academic and residential buildings had their water supplies cut from time to time. That, in addition to the project, have many students wondering why this work was not done during the summer recess.