Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE -With the $6.9 million Ullrich Hall renovation project in its eighth month of construction, university officials said the project should be finished in December as planned.

"Everything has been going well, right on schedule," said Jim Valaskey, director, facilities management. Classes are planned in the building for the spring 2005 semester.

Currently, windows are being placed in the building and construction crews are working on the roof where a penthouse has been added to house mechanical equipment. The penthouse is built several feet in from outside edges of the existing roof.

"That was done to minimize the visual impact from the ground," Valaskey said.

Maintaining the historical integrity of the building was important as university officials planned the construction project. Ullrich Hall is listed on the state and national registers of historic places.

One design aspect that was targeted was the building's windows. When Ullrich Hall, which was once the campus gymnasium, became the agriculture building in the 1960s, the original windows were replaced with aluminum frame windows. Now university officials want to replicate the original design as much as possible, and the new renovation calls for custom wooden windows that are similar to the original design. Some of the new windows have already been placed in the building.

"If you go by, they just look like they belong in the building," said Keri Pustina, project manager, facilities management.

The custom windows are being made by Eagle Window and Door Co., Dubuque, Iowa.

"Most of the stuff that goes into all of our buildings comes from suppliers in the area," Valaskey said.

When complete, Ullrich Hall will house computer science, software engineering and business classes. Plans call for state-of-the-art computer and technology laboratories.

"We're really excited about it. People will be amazed when they walk into that building," Valaskey said. "The classrooms and labs will just be great. It'll be a top-notch deal."