Work on the 157,000 square-foot Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society will began in late May. The facility, slated to open in the late fall of 2021, is being built on the site adjacent to Higgins Hall now occupied by Cushing Hall.
2019 Projects
Cushing has been vacated and interior demolition will take place during June and July. Demolition of the building will take place from mid-July through September. September will see the start of site preparation, with excavation beginning in October and lasting through December. Meanwhile, work on the foundation begins in November.
The expected completion of the foundation next February will be followed by structural steel, exterior walls, interior fit-outs, and the stone façade. The final construction phase consists of systems commissioning and inspections, ending in late fall of 2021.
Work for the day will be in progress by the time most employees arrive on campus.
The construction hours are 7 a.m.-5 p.m. on weekdays, and 8 a.m.-5 p.m. on Saturdays.
Both pedestrian and vehicular traffic will be affected in that area of Middle Campus.
Fencing has been installed around the construction site, cordoning off much of the Higgins Green. However, pedestrian access between Devlin, Higgins, Fulton, and McGuinn halls will still be possible during the project.
Construction vehicles will enter and exit the site via Beacon Street and the Campion/McGuinn gate. A Boston College Police detail will oversee vehicular as well as pedestrian traffic at the site.
Yes, there will be some impact on parking.
There will be no BC parking in the lot between Cushing, Higgins, and the Service Building. However, permit changes for the Merkert Center and Conte Forum area will help offset the loss of parking spaces; also, the lot on the west side of McGuinn will still be available for use.
Parking will be available on Newton Campus for project contractors, who will use a shuttle service to travel to the work site, so their vehicles will not be on Main Campus.
It’s liable to be noisy at least some of the time.
Ledge removal is often the most disruptive part of the excavation phase, and will entail a fair amount of hammering and pounding—though not blasting. Suffolk Construction and its sub-contractors are committed to monitoring, and mitigating when possible, the impact of work on areas adjacent to the construction site.
Facilities Management wants to keep everyone informed of the project’s progress.
There are plans for ongoing construction updates on both a weekly and monthly basis, which will be available via BC News. A webcam link will provide another means to track how the project is going.
Another information session for the University community will be held in the fall.
—University Communications | June 2019