Ongoing and upcoming major construction and renovation projects in the current capital plan (2000-2004) will be on display on Wednesday, March 21, from 4 to 7 P.M. during a Capital Projects Open House to be held in Roone Arledge Auditorium, Alfred Lerner Hall.

The event, open to the Columbia community and residents of the surrounding community, will present the scope of Columbia's Morningside projects both on and off campus. Vice President for Facilities Management Mark Burstein will make a presentation on construction at 6:15 p.m.

"This capital plan focused on adding spaces that will significantly upgrade the teaching and research environment on the Morningside campus," said Burstein. "Although most members of our community focus on new construction projects, the majority of the work will address system and infrastructure issues in existing academic buildings."

Columbia is in the midst of its largest 5-year capital construction and renovation plan, estimated at $800 million. At its completion in 2004:

• Avery, Chandler, Low and Hamilton, four of the original McKim Mead and White buildings, will have been renovated, infrastructure updated, classrooms improved.
• The third phase of Butler Library's 10-year renovation will have been completed.
• All programming space in Alfred Lerner Hall will have been completed.
• Jerome Greene and Uris Halls will have continued their multi-year renovation program.
• Earl Hall and St Paul's Chapel will have received infrastructure renewal.
• A new crew facility and tennis center at Baker Field will have been built.

In addition to on campus projects, plans for three new buildings to be built on Columbia-owned sites in Morningside Heights--.the proposed faculty residence/K-8 school at 110th Street, a new building for the School of Social Work at 122nd Street and a residence for Law School students at 121st and Amsterdam--will be presented.

Other work will take place at Health Sciences campus, in Princeton N.J., where an off-site book storage facility is being built, and at Lamont Doherty campus, in Palisades NY where a geo-chemistry building is planned.

"This event gives us an opportunity to provide a comprehensive view of the work that Columbia plans to do on and around the Morningside Heights campus for the next three years, as we upgrade and renovate to further support Columbia's academic mission," said Burstein, who oversees Columbia's construction and renovation projects.

The current capital plan will build upon the improvements made during the past capital plan, in which six new buildings were constructed and 540,000 sq. feet of space was added as the University brought the undergraduate experience and student services to the same level as Columbia's academic reputation.