By Ricky Thompson
Kerr Hall may be down, but it’s certainly not out.
As repairs on the 91-year-old residence hall continue – two months after a natural gas explosion resulted in damages estimated at $800,000 – the university contends renovations will be finished for the upcoming academic year, said Marina Iannalfo, associate dean of housing services.
“Kerr Hall is expected to reopen in September for the fall term and it is being assigned to freshmen,” Iannalfo said. “There are construction crews currently working throughout the building, and while they haven’t given me an absolute completion date, the plan is for it to be ready for the fall move-in.”
Iannalfo said the building’s ongoing work will “undoubtedly” yield improvements from its former condition.
Stan Duci, director of customer service for Northeastern facilities, said he is predicting a similar forecast for Kerr Hall.
In order to help enhance the security of on-campus housing, Duci said the university will equip Kerr with a keyless card-entry system, a safeguard popping up in residence halls around campus, such as West Village G and H and Light Hall.
Charles Vasco, a sophomore international business major and former Kerr resident, said his experience living in the historic building provided him with suggestions for improving its conditions.
“I think one of the big things was that, in Kerr Hall, there weren’t meeting rooms on each floor – there was just one big lounge,” he said. “At least one for [each floor] would be nice,” he said.
The cable service was another of the hall’s features that could benefit from repairs, former residents said.
“In the television room, you should be able to get all the channels, but [Kerr] only got about 15 [stations] and they never fixed it at any point throughout the year,” said Dory Lord, a sophomore psychology major and former Kerr resident.
Sophomore finance and insurance major Kenny Erath, also a former resident, said he had only one criticism regarding the residence hall.
“They’ve got to fix the bathrooms there,” he said. “The showers and the actual toilets are in totally separate locations, and if you need to [use the bathroom] before you take a shower, you have to walk all the way down the hall.”
As the freshmen move-in date approaches, however, Duci said the main goal is just to get the job done so members of the class of 2010 can move in Sept. 1.
“We are doing everything we can to ensure that Kerr Hall is open for student occupancy for this upcoming fall term. That is our objective, first and foremost,” he said.
