Work on 10 maintenance projects at the University of Ottawa is set to resume next week. This follows Friday’s announcement from the Government of Ontario that essential construction and maintenance projects on the province’s post-secondary campuses will be permitted to resume their activities starting Monday
The university says some of its employees from Information Technology Services, Teaching and Learning Support Service and Protection Services who worked in the ceiling space at Simard Hall and the Power Plant may have been exposed to asbestos.
The region has undergone a building boom as the city contends with a tight rental market, a growing tourism industry, and an overloaded transit system.
“It’s going to suck not being woken up to the sound of heavy machinery right outside my window,” claims Roberta Pebble, a second-floor resident of 90 University. “There’s really nothing like the sound of tons of gravel being poured on LRT track. I’ve grown to like it, I guess I’ll have to buy an alarm clock now.”
The recent loss of the Brooks residence is unfortunate, but it has given the university an opportunity to fix a problem that desperately needs to be addressed: modernization of the U of O’s arts building.
What we saw was astounding. We found loads of professional-grade concert speakers set up all over the site, hooked up to one guy’s laptop playing “Epic Construction Ruckus Medley—10-hour Version” on YouTube.
We owe the U of O administration a pat on the back for listening to students’ concerns about modernizing our campus.
While the first day of school is now set to begin Sept. 13, students whose primary faculty buildings are affected by the construction will start their courses even later, at the end of September. This delay will result in classes continuing over the winter break, with exams taking place in early January.
The current projects, led by the U of O’s facilities team, are set to improve learning, teaching, and research at the university.
The CBC reported that the workers “sought shelter in a safe zone underground” until they were rescued by firefighters. Two of the workers are unharmed, while one suffered a minor hand injury.
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