PRES RPT 2022 ONYX ANNEAU

“Leak is my least favorite word,” said Janet Clark, Ph.D., provost. “Because it means another pipe has broken.” During the 2022 Christmas break, College leadership received a call from the public safety team that a pipe burst in the bathroom of 319 and had wreaked havoc in the south wing of Le Fer Hall. Aimee Janssen-Robinson, Ph.D., associate vice president for student affairs, explained, “The water damage destroyed 219. The entire ceiling dropped in the student’s room and water leaked out into the hall and across to another room, ruining new carpet, furniture and original hardwood floors. Both rooms were occupied. This is never a call any of us wishes to receive.” Recently recarpeted floors and painted walls, original built-in cabinets, new lighting fixtures, seating and books in the Sacred Heart Chapel were damaged in the leak. The Chapel was relocated to the academic wing in 2017, occupying the westernmost room facing The Avenue.

Student room after water damage.

needs of today’s students. After the completion of four stacks this fall thanks to generous gifts from Nancy Payonk ’81 and Tom Deputy, widower of Margaret “Peggy” Kelly Deputy ’64, the College successfully upgraded one-third of the bathrooms leaving 54 (or 18 stacks) that still await funding. Since the summer of 2020, the 81 student bathrooms have been the priority. The residential floors’ nearly identical layouts arrange the bathrooms in stacks of three. As such, they must be renovated together to replace the original cast iron plumbing and to include a proper ventilation system. North wing bathroom renovations, which have all been completed, were originally prioritized to protect the McMahon Ballroom. A leak during the Christmas break several years ago caused the original hardwood floor to warp expediting its replacement in 2019. “The slow progress is concerning, given the growing campus student population. Housing was almost at capacity in fall 2022, said Clark. Plumbing issues create housing problems. When a sewage pipe leaked in September, 12 students were displaced for

Student bathroom after ceiling collapsed.

Water was also found in the south wing of Le Fer’s garden level, which had until recently housed the Sisters of Providence Archives. The archives were relocated to Rooney Hall in October 2022. The spaces were sealed in plastic by a local restoration services company with large blowers working for weeks to dry four floors of damage. “As disappointing as this latest leak is, we are not shocked,” shared Jensen-Robinson. “The plumbing has outlived its life as the grand building approaches its 100th anniversary.” Opened in 1924, Le Fer Hall’s plumbing problems have plagued SMWC for decades. Deferred maintenance and patches were the solutions until the building became a philanthropic funding priority. With more than $2.3 million in donor support since 2016 many renovations have been made in Le Fer Hall to meet the

New carpet and furniture ruined from water and falling plaster.

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