Rather Hall - Brody Neighborhood

Rather Renovations

The renovations for Rather Hall will be comparable to Emmons Hall’s recent renovations (complete for fall 2011), and will feature a contemporary design that is true to Brody Neighborhood’s origins. Rather Hall will be under construction from May 2011 through July 2012, and will be open to students for fall of 2012.

As part of the renovation plan, Rather’s first-, second-, third- and fourth-floor common areas will be completely renovated. New study, game, office and meeting spaces will carve out sections of the existing common areas on each of the four floors. Further, the first floor will have a redesigned reception, office, vending, mail sorting and trash and recycling areas. All of Rather Hall’s communal bathrooms will also be renovated. Finally, expect to see similar window walls at Rather, similar to both Brody and Emmons halls.

Rather Renovations
Rather Renovations
 May 4

Workers are continuing work in the resident wing hallways and study spaces on the fourth floor, having installed new carpet. As an added homey touch, the carpet in front of each resident room on the fourth floor features a yellow square, which is in place to look like a doormat. The third-floor study room located at the corner of two resident wing hallways is now painted and carpeted.

In addition, floor three’s community kitchen now has cabinets and lighting. Workers are now painting and installing lighting in the one-and two-bedroom apartments on the first floor. Fire alarm testing is also taking place, while workers are pouring concrete for the residence hall’s back entrances.

Rather Renovations
Rather Renovations
Rather Renovations
Rather Renovations
 April 20

Updates to Rather Hall are coming together nicely, with workers installing lighting throughout the third-and fourth-floor resident wing hallways. The community bathrooms on the third- and fourth-floor also feature installed counters, sinks, baths and showers. Resident wing hallways and the majority of the common areas on each floor are painted grey, in combination with each floor’s accent color. Throughout the study spaces and exercise area on the fourth floor, selected walls are now painted yellow, which is the accent color for the floor. The third-floor multimedia area now features teal accented walls, along with teal-accented backdrops for the televisions. Accent walls within the offices and conference rooms for the Charles Drew Science Scholars program are green.

Walls are up in the first floor one- and two-bedroom apartments, and workers are adding finishing touches to both in preparation for painting. The elevator hydraulic system is now installed in a first-floor closet space. Elevator pistons to move the elevator and tracks to guide it are both now installed within the elevator shaft. Work is also continuing on the recycling area, service center and mailbox spaces on the first floor.

Work is also being done to install railings within both stairwells of Rather Hall.

Similar progress and construction updates are being done on Rather’s sister hall, Bailey.

March 20

Updates to Rather Hall are progressing steadily, with the residence hall in the same phase of renovation as Bailey Hall.

Rather Renovations
 February 24

In the first-floor lobby of Rather Hall, workers have installed metal framing for walls that will create a seating area. Metal framing is also in place for the service center and mailbox area. A stairwell in the lobby that leads to the second floor has been constructed to give residents and faculty members easy access to the offices and study areas that will be located there. To ensure safety, workers are putting treading on the stairs. Metal frames are in place in the first-floor apartment to establish where the walls will separate the kitchen and two bedrooms.

On the third floor, tiles have been laid in the gender neutral single bathroom and workers are adding finishing touches to the newly tiled walls. The third-floor community bathrooms are undergoing waterproof testing. By plugging the drains in the floor, filling the room with water and letting the water stand, workers are able to use this testing to measure if the waterproof coating they paint on the floor is in proper condition. If no water is found on the second floor below the third-floor bathrooms, the waterproof coating will prove capable and workers can move on to tiling the floor. The space designated for a water fountain near the community bathroom now features a decorative tiled backdrop.

In addition, the commons areas and study spaces throughout Rather Hall are taking shape, with workers adding more metal framing.

Rather Renovations
Rather Renovations
 January 31

Renovation in Rather Hall is progressing steadily. Workers are finishing work in the mechanical penthouses found on the rooftop. Workers have installed glass windows which will serve as window walls in study lounges on each floor. Along the same wall, darker, decorative glass can be seen from an exterior view which separates each level of flooring.

Inside Rather Hall, heating is now working throughout. Work is being done on the ceilings in the bathrooms and will be completed soon. Wiring throughout the resident wings is complete and resident rooms have been primed. Workers have decided on a lighting strategy for the resident wing hallways that will include varying patterns of lights. Thin strips of lighting will alternate between both sides of the resident hallways and near the middle of the hallways, recessed can lighting will be installed.

On the third and fourth floors, framing is in place for the laundry rooms, which will be the main laundry rooms for Rather Hall. Framing has been installed on the third floor for the hall’s kitchen area that will be open to all students. Framing is now in place for three large-screen televisions to be mounted across from the kitchen on the third floor and will be a gaming and entertainment area.

The second floor of Rather Hall is dedicated to office spaces and conference rooms specifically for The Charles Drew Science Scholars program. A similar layout will be found in Bailey Hall for Residential Initiative on the Study of the Environment (RISE).

 November 11

Construction in Rather Hall is progressing similarly to Bailey Hall, with workers installing framing throughout. Piping installation is ongoing in bathrooms and the laundry room. Mechanical penthouses are also under construction on the roof.

 August 23

Demolition continues in Rather Hall, with workers completing the demolition of exterior balconies. Resident room windows are being torn out, allowing for the installation of new windows.

 

Rather Renovations
 July 26

Workers continue the demolition process in Rather Hall. Railings along the exterior balconies of each floor have been taken out, making way for workers to begin knocking down the balconies.

Throughout the resident wings, workers demolished hallway-facing walls in two resident rooms to make way for study areas and natural light. On each floor, the pre-existing study areas and the laundry room located next to them have been demolished. Workers plan to designate the new space entirely for study areas. Similar to Emmons Hall, workers plan to construct one consolidated laundry room.

Outside of Rather Hall, workers demolished the first-floor lobby addition. Workers will fill the pit that was left behind from demolition with concrete, and the new exterior-facing lobby walls will be made entirely of windows.

Rather Renovations
 June 27

Demolition continues in the upper levels of Rather Hall, especially in the community bathroom areas, as workers remove old pipes. In addition, asbestos tiling is being removed in all resident rooms using an abatement process, which is complete on the fourth level. Outside, a sidewalk made of pervious concrete (a more sustainable option) has been installed off Michigan Avenue to encourage students to use it rather than cutting through Brody’s parking lots. Also, large equipment is in place to remove portions of the balconies around Rather.

Rather Renovations
 June 6

Construction at Rather Hall continues to move along at a steady pace. The third and fourth floor demolition is nearly complete in the lobby areas. In addition, workers are currently removing all lighting from resident rooms.

Rather Renovations
Rather Renovations
 May 12

Facilities staff at Rather Hall is busy emptying all interior sites of furniture and fixtures, making way for work to begin soon. All current resident furniture is being either sold or recycled.