Phase 1 Elevation from Techwood - Note the Scale of the New Building

The Board of Trustees met last Sunday, October 2nd, and reviewed plans for the upcoming renovation with the undergraduates. The contractor has been selected and packages are out to four banks now. If acceptable terms are reached, we’re set for demolition beginning in December.

Phase 1 of the project is being debt financed and will include razing and rebuilding the dormitory. The new rooms will be larger and have higher ceilings and built in lofts. The electrical system will be brought into the current century as will the windows and insulation. Four men will share a bath and each bath is configured so that sink, shower and toilet can be used separately. We anticipate significant savings in utilities in the new building.

The social quarters and kitchen will remain operable during construction. Nevertheless, it’s going to a challenge for the organization for the first half of 2012 as the chapter must hold itself together through this disruption.  It’s been done in the past though and, like the chapters of 1993-94 and 1995-96, we will do what we have to and emerge from the experience stronger.

Housing Committee Members Review Options

Board members David Adcock, Gary Minor, John Reagan and Michael Smith met Wednesday 25 May 2011 at the Praxis3 offices in Atlanta to discuss kicking off phase 1 of the renovation project.

The board agreed on a new rent structure for the chapter house and reached consensus on the pro-forma.  In the coming weeks, contractors will be asked to give firm prices for construction and banks will be asked for lending commitments.

Around 1 August 2011, the board will meet again to revise the pro-forma based on information from the contractors and the banks and The Laurus Group.  If “the numbers work”, the go-ahead will be given for a start in January 2012.  If not, we’ll wait until January 2013.

A rendering of Phase I is being created and will be posted when it’s available.

Pride in our House and our Fraternity - Undergraduates Paint New Letters on the Balcony

Just in time for fall rush, contractors are finally leaving the property and the undergraduates are finishing the work and cleaning up.  The last six weeks have been a time of many changes at 159 5th Street.

Basic infrastructure items that had worn out have been replaced or repaired including plumbing, fixtures, sheetrock and HVAC units.

The treads in the old stairwells have been repaired after 37 years of continuous (ab)use.  The social quarters has been repainted inside and pressure washed outside.  The conference room is stunning.

The changes to the kitchen are transformational and will be described later.  Suffice it to say for now that Reagan has been heading that up and he thinks that everyone should eat good meals and know how to cook them themselves.

The good-hearted attempt but not well-measured letters that adorned the balcony that overlooks the volleyball court have been redesigned and replaced by the undergrads themselves…and it looks sharp.

Work Week 2009 - Yeah Baby!

Why all this when we intend a major renovation soon?

Because TKE at Georgia Tech is fundamentally a residential experience and we must provide a high-quality facility at all times if we expect undergraduates and alumni to support that.  To maintain our facilities, the BOT has taken on many responsibilities that rested with the undergraduates.  However, we are formalizing the responsibilities that remain with them in a program called “Two-a-Week” that will be rolled out early in the fall.

It has been said, “If you can’t change the people, change the people.”  Well, we’ve done some of both and that will probably continue until both undergraduate and alumni organizations are ready for the Big Project.  It is plain to see, however, that we have already come a long way.

The BOT is coordinating some major projects during Summer 2009 designed to enable the current facilities to last “in good form” until the upcoming major renovation is complete.   These projects address long term maintenance and quality of life issues that affect the ability of the undergrads to recruit new members now and the perception the alumni have of the level of care shown for the property.  This will be the last major round of work on the property until the upcoming major renovation.

We are starting to convert our kitchen from a service facility to a teaching facility.  Tasks include a major scrub-down, new non-skid floor, refinished walls, and new and refurbished equipment to make it possible to make make more and buy less pre-made.

The kitchen is temporarily unavailable for cooking

In the dormitory, showers, sinks and cabinets that had simply worn out and would no longer respond to cleaning are being replaced.  We are using tiles left over from the 1996 project to replace worn out flooring.

Outside, we are repairing and replacing exterior trim and gutters that need it.  When this work is complete, we will have a professional firm power wash the exterior to remove deep-seated dirt and other contaminants.

When you come by the house this fall, you will notice more changes than even we anticipated–and we haven’t even said anything about the interior painting yet.