A few notes for inhabitants who continue to insist on coming to work in O’Brian even though they’re making it increasingly difficult to enter (and exit) the building:
- by Friday of this week, the two south doors on the main portico entrance (facing Putnam Way at the southeast corner of the building) should be available again. Unfortunately, the other two doors (including the one with the paddle-controlled handicap access) will remain unavailable for many more weeks of the Founder’s Plaza renovation. Which brings us to:
- long-promised signs will be installed by the end of the week directing visitors to the entrance on the northwest corner of the building, especially helpful for disabled persons who cannot use stairs or who require the paddle-controlled doors
- beginning next week, more padding will be installed in the library elevator to protect the interior while heavy-duty construction materials are brought down from the seventh floor between the hours of 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. (9:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. on Wednesdays, and all weekend). This additional padding will be removed each morning. Again, it’s not a good idea to plan to use this elevator in the evening while the contractors are using it for materials transportation. You never know what you’re going to run into.
- since demolition of the seventh floor has begun, the sixth floor is the new roof of O’Brian. Given the dramatic weather of the past few days, there may be water entering this area. Please report to me immediately any signs of seepage in order to have the carpeting/walls/offices cleaned promptly to prevent long-term damage.
- as bad as that sounds, know that we made out immeasurably better than the Student Activities Center. If you look out your window you will see the green metal roof of SAC covered in small white dots. It’s not that the hail hasn’t melted — it’s that each white dot represents an attempt by University Facilities to cover the more than 5,000 holes that were punched through the metal sheeting by the hailstorm. The damage in SAC has been catastrophic.
