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Lubbers Hall Renovation Project
A major renovation project at Hope College was transforming a familiar campus
workhorse. Lubbers Hall, one of the college's most venerable academic buildings,
underwent a $3 million renovation project during the summer of 2006.
Lubbers Hall houses the departments of English, history, philosophy,
political science and religion, as well as the office of the dean for
the arts and humanities.
The renovation included reconfiguring and adding office space for members
of the faculty, reflecting growth in the programs since the departments
moved into the building in the middle 1970s. The work is adding 28 offices,
raising the total to more than 60.
The project took advantage of space made available when the department
of communication relocated from Lubbers to the Martha Miller Center for
Global Communication in the fall of 2005. The building, which totals
about 25,000 square feet and has three main floors.
In addition, the reconfiguration
reduced the number of classrooms in the building from 10 to six.
Other major components of the project included adding air conditioning
and a new fire system that will include interior sprinklers, and replacing
the windows.
The architects for the project were GMB Architects. Elzinga and Volkers
served as construction manager.
Lubbers Hall, dedicated on Sept. 16, 1942, was constructed as the college's
science building. In the fourth-floor attic, known as the "loft," the
building also housed Hope's theatre program for many years.
Theatre relocated to the DeWitt Center when it opened in 1971, and the
building ceased housing the sciences when the Peale Science Center opened
in 1973. It was subsequently renovated to serve as a center for the humanities
and social sciences, re-opening in January 1975. The department of economics
and business administration was part of the original mix, but moved to
different quarters in 1982.
In conjunction with the 1975 renovation, the building was named for
Dr. Irwin Lubbers, who served as the college's seventh president from
1945 to 1963.
This summer's renovation was funded through the college's "Legacies:
A Vision of Hope" comprehensive campaign. The campaign concluded
in January 2005 having raised more than $137.5 million. Its major components
included four primary initiatives: building a new science center and
renovating the Peale Science Center; increasing the endowment to provide
on-going support for college operations and programs; building the Martha
Miller Center for Global Communication and making a variety of campus
improvements, including the Lubbers Hall renovation; and building the
DeVos Fieldhouse.
Only five major campus buildings are older than Lubbers Hall: Van Vleck
Hall, a residence hall built in 1858; the President's Home, completed
in 1892; Graves Hall, an academic building built in 1894; Voorhees Hall,
a residence hall built in 1907; and Dimnent Memorial Chapel, completed
in 1929.
Lubbers Hall is located on the south side of 10th Street between College
and Columbia avenues.
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