|
Volume CXXXII, Number 22 |
 |
Chapel renovation: making progress and on budget
EVRON LEGALL
STAFF WRITER
 |
| The Chapel Towers over the Bowdoin campus. Before the renovation, pieces of the Chapel periodically fell due to the age of the mortar. (Hans Law, Bowdoin Orient) |
"Excellent!" is precisely how Construction Manager Donald Borkowski of Facilities Management describes the progress on the $6 million renovation of the Bowdoin College Chapel. He said that the project is proceeding on schedule with around a third of the north tower already dismantled.
Several senior workers at the site echoed the same sentiments about the project. "The first stone was removed on March 25," said Mike Boucher, the site superintendent; referring to the north spire, which is currently in the Walker Art Building. Chris Dabek, an engineer at the site-who had the painstaking job of numbering each individual stone-explained that some 1,282 stones had already been removed in a little over ten man-days.
Contrary to appearance, the stones that cover the façade of the towers have less of a structural significance than a "decorative" one and are in fact attached to the main tower structures at intervals by several interlocking stones.
One hundred and fifty years of freeze-thaw cycles, however, have effectively caused the four- inch sand layer behind the stone façade to push the stones outwards. Consequently, pieces of the stones began to fall off of both towers.
The Consigli Construction Company, which is based in Milford, Massachusetts, was awarded the contract to renovate the chapel over a period of two years. All 2,415 stones in the first tower have been individually numbered and tagged according to their exact locations and have already filled some 113 bins, each around 24 cubic feet. Any that need to be discarded will be replaced by stones from the original Brunswick quarry-Grant's Quarry-which had been abandoned for some time. Recycling is also part of the company policy, Mr. Boucher explained, and several tons of debris have already been disposed of in that way.
The large bell in the north tower will be put in storage as will the 11 smaller ones from the south tower. In days past, the large bell was rung at the beginning and end of every class. When the bells are replaced, however, there are plans to install an electronic ringing system to operate them. Mr. Borkowski noted that three additional bells would have to be installed in order for the bells to be able to play "The Star Spangled Banner" and "Silent Night," but quickly added that the idea hadn't yet come up for discussion.
When the chapel renovation is complete, the faculty offices that are currently there will be relocated to the soon-to-be-built Kanbar Hall which is currently in the bidding stages. In the meanwhile, people who wish to view the inside of the chapel can access it via the side doors.
|
FastCounter by bCentral |