Jessica Conway/ Roundup
Most college students have a hard enough time getting to class initially, and with all of the detours around campus, it’s surprising that anyone has made it to any of their classes in the last year.
Granted, that’s why even some teachers have become notorious for being late since the start of the construction on campus.
The abundance of time and energy it takes to walk around the campus construction is an incredible hassle, to say the least. It makes students wonder how much longer they will have to bare with these inconveniences?
Luckily, Swinerton Management, the company that oversees all of the construction at Pierce, and their Project Manager, David Tsao, realized that doing the mall in one piece would be too much of a burden, so they split the project into two parts.
It may seem like that decision will only prolong the project, but students and faculty should be glad that we always have atleast one half of the mall open in order to get us to our classes.
Phase 1 of the mall was from the new Student Services Center to the front of the library, which started in April 2009 and was completed just last semester. Fortunately, the school now has part of a beautiful promenade to show for it.
Phase 2 of the mall begins just past the campus Library, and ends at Parking Lot 7. It was previously anticipated to be finished before this semester ever started, but they are actively working on that section.
All of this makes us wonder about Swinerton Management’s decision to work on the mall in pieces. With one half done in a jiffy, why can’t the construction just be finished over the summer?
“Duration is of such a length, and it’s much more ineffectively costly to work when school is not in session,” says Michael Lee, Project Manager of the Mall.
This explains why construction routes will continue to cause difficulty for students and faculty alike until late October or November.
The LACCD Website ensures the Mall great beauty when completed, and it will eventually include crescent seating arrangements, new lighting, a fountain, milestone road structures, a sundial, and of course fresh landscaping.
All this sounds delightful after taking one look at the awfully chaotic campus we have now, between the chain link fencings with informal green tarps and construction implements. It’s enough to make students want to scream.
Choosing somewhere to park while the construction is proceeding is another burden for students; Parking Lot 7 & 8 are both clustered with a barricade of fencing that forces everyone to walk around the Cafeteria.
This is not so bad for students taking classes in English and Math Buildings, but for those who have classes on the West side of the campus, getting to class is an expansive and confusing mob scene. For all of our incoming freshman, this must be a big change from senior year.
Another slight complication is the diversion made between the Great Stairs and the Physics and Chemistry buildings.
This is particularly a problem with students who have classes in the Theater and Art departments, and then another class on the other side of the detour. The most common solution to this situation is to use the library as a short cut, even if it interrupts studying students.
With this in mind, all students coming from any parking lot or the Great Stairs should give themselves extra time to get to their classes on-time.
“Its an evolving process; we work with students and faculty to make detours according to the school’s traffic flow,” said Lee.
Although the campus is a mild dilemma for students and faculty, the school is spending much time and effort, not to mention about $11 million, to improve our campus.
Recognizing this will help students understand why they must deal with the stress of the construction and lengthy detours in the long run.
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