The Board of Trustees made no final decisions at last October’s board meeting on whether to renovate or raze Loy Gymnasium. Instead, additional questions were brought to the table and will have to be answered no later than the February Board meeting, President Denvy Bowman said.
Talk of converting Loy, one of the oldest standing buildings on campus, into a convergence media building has been underway for some time.
While interdisciplinary interaction is a key feature to this building, music technology, professional writing, communications, and electronic, media, and film students will benefit most from the technology included in the plans.
“At this point, the questions still include whether Loy will be razed or renovated, whether the replacement structure will be two or three stories, how best to emulate the collegiate Gothic architecture characteristic of the oldest buildings on campus, how much will the structure cost, how much donor support can the University rely on to help complete the project, what impact will the structure have on our aging boiler and chiller, and what impact will the structure have on parking,” Bowman said.
Construction on Loy, built in 1906, is planned for next summer, Provost Richard Ashbrook said in an October interview. Loy will be the first academic building worked on since the 1970s.
Once a final decision is reached, Ashbrook said new information, including architectural plans, will be announced to the campus community.
The City of Bexley must approve whatever plans are agreed upon.
