Facilities, Planning and Management will continue the restoration of the campus as weather permits until the end of the semester and into the summer.

One of the projects that is catching student attention is the area between the Life Sciences Building and Klehm Hall.

Stephen Shrake, the associate director of design and construction, said this area is being restored as green space per the terms of the master plan.

This project is in the final seeding stage and this restoration is planned to be done by June.

Shrake said the department hopes to be done with the seeding and planting by the beginning of June.

The department also plans to plant trees during the beginning of the fall, he added.

Part of the upcoming construction projects on campus will include rebuilding the west area of the University Court parking lot, including drainage work.

“We have out for bids now, the re-building of the U-Court parking lots,” Shrake said. “(We’re first are) doing the west half. It’s too big of a project to do in one year.”

Facilities and planning will also tend to some upgrades needed for the residence halls. The residence halls will have some work done to them, Shrake said.

This will include installing a new fire sprinkler system for Taylor Hall.

“A contractor is doing that work,” Shrake said. “And while they are doing that, we have other projects we are concentrating on in that building.”

The showers of the Taylor Hall north tower will be rebuilt and wireless Internet will be installed in the rooms, Shrake added.

Stevenson and Taylor Halls will also receive new carpeting on some of the floors including the lobby of Taylor Hall, Shrake said.

“We did some floors (in Stevenson) last year, but we are going to try to do three more this summer,” Shrake said.

New windows will also be installed in Lawson Hall and Taylor Halls, Shrake said.

The areas affected by the installation of the pipe leading from the Renewable Energy Center to campus will be replanted, seeded and have trees planted, Shrake said. This restoration is planned to be finished by the beginning of the fall semester.

“We are progressing with the design work to move the honors college into the former textbook rentals area,” Shrake said. “Hopefully construction on that can begin in the fall.”

Samantha McDaniel can be reached at 581- 2812 or slmcdaniel@eiu.edu