As Binghamton University continues to grow and expand, the Old Dickinson housing community renovations are coming to a close.
The Division of Advancement, the University Counseling Center and the new Alumni Center are now being housed in Old O’Connor. Renovations were completed on the facilities during the summer.
According to Steve Seepersaud, communications manager for the Alumni Center, the new facility will celebrate its grand opening during Homecoming weekend in October. The opening will feature a photography exhibition to commemorate the University’s history.
“It is our sincere hope that our graduates will feel tremendous pride when they experience what this facility has to offer,” Seepersaud said. “The Alumni Center is a visible asset of the University and symbolizes how much we value our alumni.”
Rachel Blaifeder, a junior majoring in history, said she thought that having individual buildings for alumni and counseling is essential to a college campus.
“I hope to see people making use of these centers and taking full advantage of them,” she said. “[Counseling] having its own building will make it clearer to people that they have a place to go.”
Both the Old O’Connor and Old Johnson projects began in fall 2013. Old Johnson was completed in January 2015, and the building is now home to Information Technology Services (ITS), the geography department and four new classrooms.
Old Champlain is almost finished, with the basic interior changes almost finished. A 2,000 square-foot vestibule will be created and added later in fall 2015. Once completed, the building will house Harpur Advising and services for international students such as the Globalization Center and the Korean Center.
Renovations for Old Digman are set to begin by the end of the semester, and will be completed by fall 2016, Fennie said. The building is set to remain a dormitory for undergraduate students. The changes will include maintenance items like new windows and updated heating and hot-water systems. Old Digman is the only Old Dickinson building being used for student living.
Nate Oliver, a sophomore majoring in business administration, said he thinks the renovations to Old Digman are an emergency plan to house students because of higher-enrollment rates.
But Fennie said space in Old Dickinson may be used as surge space to house people and departments as other renovations on campus occur.
“As spaces are renovated, people or offices sometimes have to be temporarily relocated and then they’re moved back,” Fennie said. “So some of that space in [Old] Dickinson may be used that way.”
The renovations to Old O’Connor and Old Johnson cost $21 million combined; Old Champlain and Old Whitney cost $6 million each and the estimated budget for Old Digman is currently $4.5 million, but it may change when the design is complete.
Fennie said that the Old O’Connor, Old Johnson and Old Champlain renovations were funded by the State Capital Plan which provides money for all universities across New York for non-residence halls. Old Digman was funded by the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, which pays back money through fees that students pay for rooms.
According to Seepersaud, the entire project was planned with the intention of keeping the spirit of the University while updating the facilities for students.
“We will honor the past,” Seepersaud said, “and look to a future that we will create together.”