The current construction next to Bragaw is the beginning to the summer-long project to enlarge the sewers and add storm drains throughout Central Campus. This initiative required covering up a portion of Lee Lot as the early stages of construction began.

Because of the growing number of students, projects like these are necessary to provide adequate space on campus. 

Charlie Marshall, the associate director of construction management, talked about what to expect in terms of construction over the next few months.

“This project has two components to it,” Marshall said. “Both of them are to improve the existing services that are already there… One is a sanitary sewer, because the existing sewers are too small and don’t have the capacity needed for everybody in the future. The other part is a storm drain to control rainwater.” 

Although this project is intended to extend its reach to most of Central Campus, Marshall says the construction is expected to be ready before students come back for the fall.

“We expect this project to be done by the time school starts back up in the fall, as long as too much rain doesn’t interfere, and the parking spots will be back to the way they were,” Marshall said. 

Because students are still occupying most of campus, the project cannot fully begin until classes and finals have ended and there is less pedestrian traffic.

“While the students are here, the construction is just in the Lee Lot,” Marshall said. “On May 13th, the construction will expand because the students won’t be here.”

Because some parking spots have been taken up by the construction going on, students have had concerns about parking. 

Hannah Cole, a second-year in the College of Sciences, spoke about how the construction has affected where she parks on campus because of the lack of effective parking for students.

“Since the parking lot will become full quicker during move-out… some people are going to have to park in the Sullivan Lot and have to walk more with their items,” Cole said.

Because a number of parking spots were blocked off in Lee Lot, more students had to park in the other section of the Resident West lot. 

“They made more people have to go from Lee Lot to Sullivan Lot, which is just more inconvenient than anything else,” Cole said.

 Chris Dobek, the parking services manager, said over email that the university undersold the Resident West lots to compensate for the parking spots being taken up by construction, and all the parking spots will go back to normal in the next school year.