WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY NEWS vol 12 no 3 November 2008 Central Campus Restoration Projects Opening Soon Six years ago, Weber State University set out to renovate and remodel the core of the Ogden campus. Two of the key components to that plan, a renovated Stewart Bell Tower Plaza and the new classroom facility Elizabeth Hall, will open before spring semester after years of planning, design and construction. The Stewart Bell Tower Plaza remodel, which is scheduled to open before Thanksgiving, is designed to become a central park for the Ogden campus. "We wanted to emulate the beauty of the hillside above campus with exposed rock, natural vegetation and water, " said Norm Tarbox, vice president of Administrative Services. For the trees and plants to survive, however, a new drainage system was required to remove excess groundwater. "The old plaza was originally designed to have more vegetation, but all of the plants died, " Tarbox said. "So we had to design and build a sizable drainage system, which will be vital for the plant life to thrive long-term. " Also included in the redesign is an enhanced water feature for aesthetic purposes. Although the plaza will reopen later this month, improvements to the bell tower clock will not be completed until spring. In addition to the remodeled plaza, WSU is preparing to open Elizabeth Hall for spring semester 2009. The 94,000-square-foot building includes 29 classrooms, seven computer lab classrooms, a writing center, tutoring center, lecture hall and 95 faculty offices. "Elizabeth Hall has far exceeded my expectations, " Tarbox said. "I believe MHTN Architects and Jacobsen Construction hit a home run with that building. " Tarbox is especially pleased with the faculty offices, which stretch from the northeast to south parts of the building. "The faculty offices are beautiful, " he said. "Each office has a picture-window view of campus and its surroundings. " The building, which will house the English, communication, telecommunications and business education, and foreign languages departments, will offer more classes than any other facility on campus. It is named in honor of longtime university supporter and benefactor Elizabeth Dee Shaw Stewart and was funded by the state Legislature and private donations. The university has already completed the redesign of the Stewart Library west entrance and a remodel of the Shepherd Union Building as part of the master plan for central campus. The final phase includes replacing Buildings 3 and 4 with a classroom building similar to Elizabeth Hall. "These projects make the center of campus a much more appealing destination for students, faculty and staff to enjoy, and it should be so for years to come, " Tarbox said. Travis Clemens, University Communications