Breaking Down Walls

As anyone who has class or works in the Combes building will have noticed, demolition has started at the Quai.

Our first, symbolic step was to open the passageway between the Combes and Quai d’Orsay buildings, by demolishing part of the back wall of the Combes lobby. Of course, we’ve also put up a wall to separate Combes from the construction site, and to hide the impressive hole in the back of the building!

Our next step will be to demolish the two-story building located immediately behind Combes. We will rebuild and enlarge it into a four-story structure that will hold offices and a classroom.

Given its proximity to Combes, this is the work that will impact activities in that building the most. To preserve the sanity of students and faculty, we’ve moved classes and events out of the room that is closest to the construction zone.

Demolition will continue through January 2018, extending to the main building on the Quai d’Orsay side. There we will remove the existing staircases and elevator shafts on all ten floors, and create two large openings in each of the floors to accommodate two new staircases.