Workers began the demolition of Allegheny Hall on Wednesday, Sept. 27. The two-story, 16-room dormitory was located at the north end of campus at 404 Allegheny Street, and follows the demolition of Caflisch Hall earlier this semester.
Allegheny Hall served as gender-inclusive housing for sophmores, juniors and seniors until last academic year, when it was used as quarantine housing for students with COVID-19.
While the structure itself has been knocked down, debris will continue to be removed from the site in the coming days — though some materials had been removed before the teardown started.
“Similar to the demolition of Caflisch Hall, we partnered with a local non-profit to offer the reclamation of windows, doors and metal prior to the demolition in alignment with our sustainability commitments while also supporting a local entity and their work through the resale of these materials,” Vice President for Enrollment Management Ellen Johnson wrote in an email to The Campus Wednesday evening.
Both Allegheny and Caflisch halls were taken offline for this year due to low student interest and high operating costs.
“The problem with Allegheny Hall is that it is on a different power grid than the college and so is more difficult to manage,” Director of Physical Plant Joe Michael told The Campus in January. “Allegheny Hall’s power potential is lower than other buildings … for example, only one microwave can be supported at a time in the building.”
Students received an email Monday, Sept. 25, with a link to provide their input on the Caflisch Hall site. That form will close on Monday, Oct. 2.
Dean for the Student Experience Ian Binnington is scheduled to speak about the future of Caflisch at the next Allegheny Student Government General Assembly on Tuesday, Oct. 3.
As for Allegheny Hall?
“The footprint of Allegheny Hall will become additional green space,” Johnson wrote.