Building, renovation projects totaling $11M to keep YSU abuzz this summer

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

Don’t count on the typical quiet slowdown at Youngstown State University this summer.

That’s because a busy construction season is beginning on four major building projects totaling nearly $8.6 million. Major work includes construction of a new Veterans Resource Center and major renovations to Melnick, Cushwa and DeBartolo halls.

An additional $2.9 million will be spent this summer on projects ranging from elevator upgrades to roof renovations, bringing the total to more than $11 million.

“We have had a very busy past several months planning a variety of campus improvement projects, and this summer they are all moving into the construction phase,” said Gene Grilli, vice president for finance and administration.

The $1 million Veterans Resource Center will be built on Wick Avenue between Pollock House and Melnick Hall and will house the YSU Office of Veterans Affairs.

The project is part of the university’s effort to help military veterans and service members succeed as university students. The project will be funded through bond proceeds. Private gifts will be used to retire the debt. Construction should be finished next spring.

The renovation project at Melnick Hall will cost $4.5 million and will turn the building into a communication/media hub. WYSU-FM, Rookery Radio, The Jambar, the NewsOutlet, the journalism program, and some elements of the Telecommunications program will be relocated there.

The project, funded with a combination of state capital money and university bond proceeds, should be finished by next spring.

Cushwa and DeBartolo halls will receive interior renovations totaling nearly $3.5 million, including upgraded finishes in faculty and staff offices, corridors and public spaces and improved mechanical equipment and lighting.

Both projects should be finished by the start of the fall semester this August. A second phase of improvements in DeBartolo will take place next summer. The improvements will be funded with a combination of state capital money and university bond proceeds.

Other projects planned for this sumer include campus roof renovations, including Kilcawley House, $2 million; repair and replacement of broken walkways, steps and driveways across campus, $360,000; repairs to sections of the utility tunnel under the Kilcawley Center loading dock, $200,000; and renovations to the sixth and seventh floors of Kilcawley House residence hall, $100,000.

The $4.3 million sports complex project on Fifth Avenue across from Stambaugh Stadium should be finished this summer as well.