When renovations attack

In my last post, I mentioned renovations at the old place I used to live while a Cornell student: Risley Hall. Some of you probably lived there yourselves, and others have at least seen the place, so let me elaborate:

Brian and I arrived at Risley to find a cyclone fence strung around the perimeter. Cornell had put up a sign indicating what was going on. This summer, they are replacing all of the windows in the building with efficient modern windows. Also, the plumbing system is being upgraded, and apparently the bathrooms are being remodeled as well. They had some nasty photos of clogged pipes on the sign explaining the renovation. Good for Cornell, for investing in student housing. A few years ago they built new North Campus dorms. Currently, they are constructing new dorms on West Campus to replace the U-Halls - that's right, no more U-Halls. As already mentioned, Risley is being renovated, as is Balch Hall (though the renovations at Balch look to be less extensive).

Risley was built in 1911 and, if I remember correctly, it was last renovated around 1970, when they upgraded the heating system and made cosmetic repairs (the building had fallen into some disrepair). A few years ago, on visiting, I noticed that they had carpeted the rooms and purchased new furniture. I am impressed with these changes, and once again, I'm glad to see Cornell spending money on increasing the comfort for its students, rather than building indoor practice facilities for their football team (as a certain Midwestern university I attended chose to do).