Groundbreaking for renovations to Newhouse II could start as early as spring 2013 and will involve restructuring the exterior of the building and upgrading the studios.

‘Right now, we are proceeding into the design work,’ said Eric Beattie, director of the Office of Campus Planning, Design and Construction. ‘It’s not definite, but a spring 2013 groundbreaking is conceivable.’

A spring 2010 study determined upgrades were needed to the back of Newhouse II facing Waverly Avenue and to the broadcast studios.

The modifications to the studios will include changes to the studio space, equipment and control room, according to a Sept. 23, 2010, article published by The Daily Orange.

The construction will take about a year to complete once it starts, Beattie said.

The upgrades were originally projected to cost $12 to $15 million, but Beattie said they may now cost $15 to $20 million. The increased cost is mainly because the price of the materials has changed since initial planning. The final cost will also depend on what options the school chooses, he said.

‘Once we come up with design concepts, we will have more precise cost estimates,’ Beattie said.

A fundraising campaign to finance the renovations is ongoing, said Lorraine Branham, dean of the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

‘We are working on a couple of significant gifts that we hope will really jump-start the fundraising process,’ Branham said.

Nena Garga, a senior broadcast and digital journalism and political science major, said in an email she thinks the studios need to be upgraded.

‘Based on the control rooms I have been in, the Newhouse one is quite dated,’ she said. ‘Working in a dated control room isn’t helpful because the industry is beyond what we are learning on. It’s not the most realistic for kids to learn in.’

Melanie Witkower, a sophomore television, radio and film and marketing major, said she would prefer if the renovations were not done during school.

‘I would definitely not like to be inconvenienced for an entire semester for a nicer building exterior, learning happens regardless of what the outside of the building looks like,’ she said in an email.

Marisa DeCandido, a junior broadcast and digital journalism major, agrees with Witkower and said she would like to see the money go to upgrading the studios first, which she said have a lot of outdated equipment.

Said DeCandido: ‘The field of broadcast journalism is always changing, and having better equipment will help us be better prepared after we graduate.’

jliannet@syr.edu

Published on January 30, 2012 at 12:00 pm

Contact Jessica: jliannet@syr.edu | @JessicaIannetta