A glimpse of the future
In a little more than three months the East Area Residence Halls will be ready to house students.
The rooms in Celani Hall and Fabiano Hall are receiving finishing touches. Celani is expected to be completed by the end of June, Skomski said, with Fabiano to be finished by the end of July.
The biggest challenges right now are finishing the new dining commons and lounge areas, he said.
The $30 million project, which started a little more than a year ago, will house 454 occupants, with 12 four-bedroom rooms on each floor.
Every floor will feature a kitchen and laundry room with three washers and three dryers.
One of the most intriguing new features is a pond that will be in between the halls and in front of the residential restaurant.
The pond is 140 feet in length and varies from 20 to 40 feet wide. It will include two fountains, one at each end.
And, in the winter, it will be frozen over so students can ice skate on it.
“Once we turn the fountains off and the water freezes up, you’ll be able to put your skates on and jump over the wall,” Skomski said. “Of course, we will provide them (students) a free shovel to clear the snow.”
One of the last details is the $650,000 landscaping project. That project is slated to begin in late June and be finished by the end of July or early August.
And they aren’t the only ones who can’t wait.
“I think this project is very exciting for CMU,” said Grant Skomski, assistant director for Residence Life. “But I’m starting to get to the point where I would like to just see it be done.”
Many students say they can’t wait to see the project finished and are looking forward to the conveniences that will be available.
Taiwan first-year graduate student Sabrina Chou lives in the Washington Apartments and said she’s looking forward to using the restaurant.
“There is nothing nearby that I can just walk to and use,” she said. “I would love to move in there, but I hate moving. Some of my friends are moving in and I can’t wait to see what it will look like.”
Others can’t wait to use the pond for ice skating.
“That will be great for the winter when there’s not much to do anyway,” said Snover senior Jillian Gerstenberger. “The buildings look amazing and it really brightens up campus. But I’ll be glad when it’s done because I’m tired of walking around construction sites and piles of dirt.”
