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Construction began outside of Canfield Hall last week as part of a $13 million project to update the system that distributes electricity on campus.
“We have a system of electric switches and cables that bring power to buildings,” said Lindsay Komlanc, Ohio State spokeswoman for Administration and Planning. “Utility systems and the parts that support them need to be upgraded from time to time to keep them in good working order.”
The work outside of Canfield, a residence hall on South Campus, is one of 26 locations set to undergo similar upgrades in the $13 million project, Komlanc said.
Duct banks, which are groups of ducts protecting electrical wiring, are slated to be installed underground with a system of conduits, or tubes, for new cables to be pulled through at a later date that Komlanc said has not yet been determined.
“Most of the more intrusive work will be along Tuttle Drive heading toward Ives Drive where the Northwest Parking Garage is,” Komlanc said. “We may have to close lanes, but that work is planned for the summer breaks when less faculty and students are on campus.”
Fences outside of Canfield went up Feb. 2 and work began Feb. 3.
The electric improvement project began in summer 2013 and is slated to be completed in late 2015, Komlanc said.
Komlanc said Thursday the construction outside of Canfield was set to take about a week’s worth of work, but could take longer because of weather conditions.
Komlanc said in October the university spent an average of $3 million a month on electricity for the Columbus campus.
“This supports 450 buildings and 22 million square feet of space — with a user base of more than 56,000 students and 23,000 faculty and staff,” Komlanc told The Lantern in an email in October.
Some residents of Canfield Hall don’t mind the construction.
“The fences don’t really bother me because they’re not where I walk,” said Cory Mossing, first-year in business, of the fences in a yard on the 11th Avenue side of the residence hall.
Noise from construction, however, has been disturbing for others.
“It only bothers me when they start working at 7 in the morning. That gets annoying,” said Felicity Peabody, first-year in communication.
Komlanc said the fences are set to remain up until later in the spring when Administration and Planning plans to return to plant new grass and restore the area.
