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Tucker may receive repairsTucker Hall could soon see the familiar sights of scaffolding and construction for a renovation to meet the needs of 21st-century students. College officials are currently working to secure a solid capital budget from the General Assembly for Tucker’s renovation. One of the most important additions would be to make the building conform with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Currently, Tucker is labeled as a building with limited accessibility for students with disabilities. Changes would include various handicap accessible ramps and a four-stop elevator, among others. Some renovation changes have already taken place, such as the replacement of half the windows last year. Tucker, originally meant to house the College’s library, was built in 1908 making it one of the oldest buildings on campus. Because of its age, renovation would be both complex and challenging. “The design alone [would] take 18 months,” Anna Martin, vice president of administration at the College, said. “It’s a complicated building to renovate. It’s old and has six different levels.” Martin is one of the many officials working to secure a capital budget Tucker’s renovation is part of the Six Year Plan for capital projects, established in 2005 by the College in compliance with state law. The plan binds the College to renovate and modernize several buildings on campus. Tucker was selected as a primary candidate for renovation in the first biennium period of the plan. “It’s been on the books for a long time,” Martin said. Moreover, the College also operates upon two different budgets, the capital budget and the operating budget. The capital budget is money allocated by the state for items of renovation or construction, while the operating budget allocates money for various programs, which include such programs as faculty pay and student club funds. Since Gov. Kaine’s recent budget cuts affected only the operating budget, Martin said that the cuts should not have an effect on the quality, nor the quantity, of renovations for any of the College buildings. However, Martin did mention that the passage of an adequate capital budget is integral if the College is to keep using Tucker in the future. “It’s an old building in poor condition and is in very much need of renovation,” she said. |
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The Flat Hat The Student Newspaper of the College of William and Mary since 1911 |
Seed Newsvine
Not gonna lie, Tucker is one heck of an old building…I really hope the interior isn’t renovated into something new-era/contemporary’esk. That’d be really really disappointing. While we’re at it…can we get back the old-school units with trees on the porches, blow gymnasium, a legit Indian school, feathers in our logo, the wren cross…and while we’re at it, let’s give the alumni house back to Kappa Alpha
— Sir Hobbit Gopher Mar 25, 09:17 AM #
Remember that Tucker’s present layout is far from “historic”
That said, some of the “repairs” that have been done to the Old Campus buildings have seriously ruined their character.
On the other hand, if they gave it the treatment that Blair received, it’d be pretty nice.
Also, if they could get rid of that “raw sewage” smell, it’d be pretty fantastic….
— andrew Mar 25, 10:15 AM #
“While we’re at it…can we get back the old-school units with trees on the porches, blow gymnasium, a legit Indian school, feathers in our logo, the wren cross…and while we’re at it, let’s give the alumni house back to Kappa Alpha” – Sir H. Gopher
Goodness, I thought I was the most politically driven reader of the FH. It’s a building renovation, nothing more. Must you Nicholites see conspiracy beneath every desk and behind every tree? Have a beer, take a walk and get a life please.
— owens Mar 25, 10:32 AM #
Don’t worry…I’m not the swashbuckling nicholite I appear to be. I’d just like to preserve a little bit of that rustic feel on campus. I like my buildings like I like my whiskey…well aged.
P.S. I only wish I could take that walk with a beer…unfortunately we have that horrible open container law!
— Sir Hobbit Gopher Mar 25, 01:42 PM #
A typical Owens over-reaction. I need to think less political, take more walks, drink more beer and get a life.
— owens Mar 25, 03:07 PM #
I, too, hope they do not renovate it too much … I like the old quirky Tucker, with its chipping paint and resident ghost and all. I hope they don’t exorcise the ghost.
— Nora, class of '98 Mar 26, 11:36 AM #
As some one who has worked there for years, let me assure you that for those who have to be there every day, Tucker Hall isn’t quirkily crumbling and charming anymore, and has not been so for years. Frankly, the building is simply a mess—and a dangerous one at that, with a marble staircase that does not meet current building codes and has caused at least one concussion, as well as a nasty raw sewage smell that probably violates some OSHA provisions. The fact that it has not been renovated since 1967 is shameful and shows how little the Commonwealth invests in the infrastructure of its universities, as Tucker has been on the renovation list for at least the last five years or so. I’m sure the plans for renovation will preserve the charming entry hallway and elegant theater, but will fix up the horrible plumbing (which might well be leaking raw sewage into the walls) and install an elevator. That way professors on upper floors don’t need to meet disabled students in the lobby and English classes don’t have to be moved all the way to Morton or Andrews due to Tucker’s lack of accessibility. I don’t see anyone complaining about the lovely renovation to James Blair Hall, which preserved that building’s historic feel; I’m sure those who plan the Tucker renovation can manage something similar.
— tuckerite Mar 26, 12:11 PM #
I wish they don’t make Tucker into a whole new building. I for one like the age, the smell, the historical feel of it.
— Kate Mar 27, 07:54 PM #