University of Vermont
Photograph circa 1970.
In 1971 a renovation plan for Pomeroy Hall is was approved in order to accommodate the growing number of students in the Department of Communications and Theater (formerly the Speech and Drama Department). The decision to renovate the building was made after plans for a new two to three million dollar communications center were put on hold because of budgetary concerns.60
Work began that summer on what was considered to be the worst building on the University of Vermont campus. Many of the interior rooms were changed by the removal or addition of partitions. Structural reinforcements using steel beams and laminated wooden beams were made on each floor. These beams were supported by new concrete piers in the basement. Suspended acoustical panel ceilings with fluorescent lights were installed throughout the building. The stairway in the front tower was replaced and a new steel and concrete stairway was built onto the rear of the 1858 addition to bring the building up to current fire codes. Fire doors were installed at the stairway entrances on each floor. A new gas furnace was installed and most of the plumbing and electrical systems were replaced.61
As reported on June 6, 1971:
The move is on this summer at the University of Vermont to renovate one of the school's oldest and most dilapidated buildings- Pomeroy Hall, home of the speech and drama.
The Main Street building, now completely gutted will have both a back and front staircase plus fire exit, bringing the 142- year old structure up to current standards and regulations.
The entire plumbing system will be changed, according to Mitchell Call of the UVM campus planning office. A fire warning light will be installed and the electrical system is in the process of being rewired.
The girls, smiled Call, will be especially happy to have the building remodeled. Previously, the only difference between the men's and women's bathrooms, as the story goes, was which way the sign was switched depending on who was in there.
Before the refurbishing was started, about a month and a half ago, said Call, I think I can honestly say it was the worst building we had on campus. No one went in it if he could avoid it, Call said.
The structure, built in 1829, served as the medical college for a number of years before it was given to the speech and drama department. The staircases never were widened to accommodate the increased flow of traffic, the floors sagged and the building was almost in total disrepair, according to Call.
There was continual discussion the building wasn't up to standards and working as well as it could, he explained. Now, for $84,000, which is $216,000 less than it would cost to build the space Pomeroy will supply, the building will house five good-sized classrooms and a seminar room. The estimate, said Call, is based on $35 construction cost per square foot.
In the meantime, the speech and drama offices are located in Grasse Mount which this year ended its long term as a women's dormitory. The building is scheduled to be completed early September.
The move to renovate Pomeroy, said Call, is part of the University's move to provide facilities for fine arts. In approximately one and a half months, he said, work will begin on Williams Hall, converting three floors into an area to teach art
Fine arts is our major priority at the moment, declared Call. This is an alternate fine arts program, which, he said, is designed to last only five years or so.
Facilities and money are much needed, and he said, we're definitely going back to the legislature again and again and again.
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In 1975 Pomeroy Hall was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the University Green Historic District. A concrete ramp and four story elevator tower designed by Dorwin Thomas Architects of Shelburne, Vermont, were added in 1981 to the rear of the 1858 ell to provide access to the building for those with disablities.62 |
UVM Historic Preservation
Program
Updated 2/99 by TDVisser
histpres@zoo.uvm.edu
