Newhouse II may undergo $12 million to $15 million worth of renovations, once funding is secured, to add updated technology to the studios and overhaul the building’s facade.

‘It would be great if we could use this as an opportunity to turn that ugly stone wall in front of Waverly into a beautiful opening into Newhouse II and turn it into glass,’ said Lorraine Branham, dean of the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

The proposed upgrades to Newhouse II include interior upgrades to the broadcast studios and a complete redo to the back of the building facing Waverly Avenue. Officials have completed the first step of planning and conducting a study to determine the needs of Newhouse II, and are awaiting the second step, university approval and funding, Branham said.

‘To call them Newhouse II renovations is actually premature, because all we’ve done so far is a study, and we’re quite a little ways away from having anything happen,’ Branham said.

The study provided a concept for the proposed renovations, such as the materials needed to complete the project and a ballpark figure of how much it would cost, Branham said. Two consultants, one from an architecture firm and one from a consulting firm, were selected to work together and come up with a proposal for the renovation plans, she said.

Eric Beattie, director of the Office of Campus Planning, Design and Construction, also helped plan the project and said the study began late last fall and concluded in May.

‘The process was kind of identifying what’s there now, and is or isn’t it working well,’ Beattie said.

Specific details about the project, such as the construction sequence, have not yet been discussed, he said.

Beattie said he is unsure where the funding would come from, but expects it to be largely from fundraising and donations.

‘It’s a fairly costly, expensive undertaking, so how it will be paid for is not worked out, and where the funds will come from is not determined,’ he said.

Most of the proposed renovations will take place in the interior of Newhouse II, such as changes to the studio space, equipment and control room, Beattie said.

‘It’s probably the most important aspect of the project to improve and replace technology that’s becoming outdated at this point,’ he said.

Branham said all Newhouse students will be able to use the renovated studios — not just broadcast journalism majors — to experience working in and utilizing a studio facility.

‘If we’re going to be one of the top schools to do broadcast journalism in this country, we have to have facilities with state-of-the-art equipment and state-of-the-art facilities,’ Branham said.

Plans to renovate the exterior of Newhouse II have also been discussed. One possibility is to replace the back wall with windows to make the activities from the inside more visible from the outside, Beattie said.

There are differences in opinion of the proposed renovation plans, Branham said. She is aware there will be different ideas from faculty, staff and students of what the proposed renovations should entail. But no one is opposed to the renovation itself, she said.

Leigh Isaacson, a senior broadcast journalism major, said she hopes the renovation will not focus entirely on the building’s exterior and studios, but also include changes to the overlooked aspects of Newhouse II, such as the stairwells, the locks on the bathrooms and the hallways.

‘It kind of looks like a middle school hallway,’ Isaacson said. ‘I was embarrassed to walk down the hallway with my mom and say, ‘This is one of the best broadcast schools in the country.”

The proposed renovations are expected to take nine months to a year to complete, Branham said. Concerns, such as where classes would be held during renovations, still need to be addressed, she said. There are no plans to renovate Newhouse I or Newhouse III.

This is an important project for Newhouse II because technology has changed so much since the building opened in the 1970s, Branham said.

‘We’ll have a state-of-the-art facility that will really bring us into the turn of the century,’ she said. ‘It’s going to be an amazing thing for the school as a whole.’

shkim11@syr.edu

Published on September 22, 2010 at 12:00 pm