Remodel Project to Displace Students
By Cohen, Betsy
Courtroom drama takes on a whole new meaning this spring for the University of Montana Law School. Contractors have started working on the school’s $13.8 million addition and remodeling projects, and when the digging and pounding begins in earnest, law classes will move to the Missoula Children’s Theatre on East Broadway.
The ground-shaking, window-rattling, distracting noises were expected to take place in January over UM’s winter recess, but single-digit and subzero temperatures thwarted the plan, said Mike Panisko, project manager.
Some of the loudest work is expected to happen in February, and when the noise becomes too difficult to work around, law professors will move their classrooms to MCT’s classrooms, which are housed in a building that once served as Missoula ‘s Central School.
“We will wait until conditions are such that it is necessary to move,” said Ed Eck, UM Law School dean. “As great as the MCT center is, there are still some conveniences here – including book storage, access to libraries, more Internet access, power for laptops. All those things make staying here preferable as long as possible.”
At MCT, the classrooms will be empty and available for the Law School during the day, but the space will be shared with MCT’s drama classes and activities, which are held late in the afternoon and during the evening.
One of the classrooms the Law School will be using is normally a “makeup” room, Eck said, and another has a wall of mirrors that is normally used for dance classes and performance rehearsals.
Because of the sharing, the Law School, which serves 250 students, can’t really move into the rooms, which will be a challenge, Eck said.
The construction project is expected to last 18 months, and will come in two parts, Panisko said.
The new additions, south of the Law School on Eddy Street, are the first priority.
Because the work area is so close to the Law School and near the campus steam tunnels, the task is particularly challenging, Panisko said.
The second part of the project will be remodeling about one- third of the Law School to make the building disabled-accessible and to install air-conditioning systems.
Panisko said he didn’t know for sure when the school would have to commute to MCT, but believes it will likely occur around Feb. 18.
“The best answer I can give,” Panisko said, “is they are going to move when the activity outside becomes such they cannot have a quality educational experience in the classroom, particularly those in the southeast corner of the building.”
Copyright The Missoulian Jan 28, 2008
(c) 2008 Missoulian. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.