Construction Season Set to Begin at CSUN

Same story, different summer.

As students leave Cal State Northridge at the end of the spring semester, the bulldozers and construction crews are moving in to demolish and repair buildings damaged by the 1994 Northridge earthquake. But school officials say it’s nothing new.

“Welcome to Cal State Northridge since the earthquake,” said Carmen Ramos Chandler, university spokeswoman.

Summer construction has been a part of life for summer school students since 1994, but officials say the end is in sight.

“At least we’ll begin to see closure, the lights at the end of the tunnel are getting brighter and brighter,” Chandler said.”

The most extensive construction will be at the fine arts building and South Library. Both will be demolished along with the west wing of the Delmar T. Oviatt Library. All three demolition projects begin this month and are expected to be finished in August, officials said.

Repairs to Jerome Richfield Hall and Sierra Tower are expected to be completed this summer, allowing the classroom and faculty offices buildings to reopen for the first time since the quake, Chandler said.

A portion of the engineering building is expected to reopen this fall following summer repairs and most of the kinesiology building is expected to be usable when students arrive for the fall semester.

Other buildings to undergo repairs over the next few months are the preschool buildings, children’s center, central plant and administration building. In some cases, trailers will be provided for summer classes.

One bonus after the bulldozers finish will be the improvements to buildings, including the addition of fiber optic cables to make classrooms and offices Internet-accessible, Chandler said.

Students and faculty are urged to call the university’s recorded information line, (818) 677-5978, to learn more about locations of construction work scheduled for the next week.