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February 8, 2019

17 Lex Building: Renovation Update

To Students, Faculty, and Staff,

I hope your spring semester is off to a successful start. While many of you were away from campus for the winter break, construction work on the historic Lawrence and Eris Field Building at 17 Lexington Avenue (17 Lex) continued apace. Most of the progress was critical infrastructure and behind-the-scenes work rather than cosmetic finishes that you might more immediately notice.

The goals we accomplished included:

*         Getting one refurbished elevator back online with another one due to come online in the next couple of weeks. Work has commenced on the renovation of a third elevator with the new elevator back online.

*         Demolishing the storefront of the lobby in preparation for the construction of a new entryway filled with natural light.

*         Installing structural steel in the lobby as well as work on a lobby ramp and stairs.

*         Continued progress on below-ground infrastructure work in the basement and exterior of the building.

*         Installation of ducts and shafts in the corridors is almost complete; work will begin soon to remove construction walls and close ceiling openings. This work, which is being done overnight, should be completed by end of this month.

*         Installation of mechanical equipment (e.g., chillers, an emergency generator) on the roof was completed using cranes on weekends over the last couple of months and will be fully finalized this month, weather permitting.


Elevators
Those of you who study and work in 17 Lex know that the elevators continue to be problematic, especially during peak usage times at the beginning and end of classes. Given the delays inherent to having an insufficient number of elevators, I ask that you aim to arrive 15-20 minutes early for your classes and appointments and work with Public Safety so we can keep elevator lines moving and fully indoors.

Project Management
The 17 Lex building renovation project is being managed by CUNY and supervised by the university's on-site construction manager, the LiRo Group. Baruch's Campus Facilities unit, under my leadership, is also working to address specific concerns as they are identified, either handling them directly where possible or engaging CUNY and LiRo to request immediate action.

Communication Plan
Last Friday we sent a targeted message<https://www.baruch.cuny.edu/facstaff/documents/17LexCampusOperationsNotice2.1.19.pdf> to Lex occupants and faculty and students with classes in the building that included instructions and appropriate contact information for questions and concerns. We will continue to provide those targeted messages. We will also provide regular updates to the entire campus community on the progress of this project.

Thank You for Your Patience
I know it is difficult to conduct business as usual in an active construction zone. This phase of work (Phase 1A) is currently on track for completion by January 2020. I realize that is some time away, but as we get closer to that milestone, progress should be more visible and inconveniences should diminish. I appreciate your continued patience and understanding in the meanwhile.

Sincerely,

Katharine T. Cobb
Vice President for Finance and Administration


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