A groundbreaking ceremony Thursday, May 4, to mark the beginning of Phase II of the reconstruction of Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations (ILR) complex, is expected to draw 150 people - government officials, project leaders, administrators, faculty and students.

The ceremony will take place from 1:30 to 3 p.m. in the lower (west) quadrangle of the ILR building complex at Cornell and is open to the media. In attendance will be state Assemblyman Martin A. Luster (D-125th), Henrik N. Dullea, vice president for university relations at Cornell, representatives of the State University Construction Fund, architectural team members from Herbert Beckhard & Frank Richlan, Architects, and project contractors. The project is anticipated to be completed in three years and will cost $19.8 million, most of it already allocated by the State of New York. Phase I of the project, which involved the construction of a new ILR teaching facility and Catherwood Library on Tower Road, was completed in 1998.

The Phase IIa plans call for the complete renovation of the three-story east wing of Catherwood Library, which was built in 1962 and is adjacent to the new teaching facility. The wing houses reference and reading rooms and much of the library's vast collection of materials on labor and industry. Once that work is completed, in summer 2001, the school will launch Phase IIb, which calls for the renovation and linking of the ILR Conference Center, Extension and Research Buildings on Garden Avenue, home to the school's outreach programs and staff, conference facilities and graduate student offices as well as a satellite U.S. post office.

"We are delighted that Phase II is now under way and extremely grateful to all of those who made this project possible, including our friends in the Legislature and the SUNY Construction Fund," said Edward Lawler, dean of the ILR School. "The project will ensure that our Catherwood Library and our Extension Division are at the forefront of their fields."

The renovation results will be profound for anyone who studies, teaches or works at the ILR School. The project, along with the already completed Phase I building, will double the library's space, adding more, better designed reading rooms and small study areas and improved climate-controlled storage for its collections. Students, faculty and staff also will benefit from revamped classrooms, offices, meeting rooms and conference facilities and links between buildings to create a greater sense of community.

The buildings will comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and safety codes - important at a school that pays careful attention to OSHA regulations and has its own Program on Employment and Disability. And they will be fully rewired for new technology - a logical next step for the ILR School, which already has some superb distance learning classrooms in its teaching facility.

Phase IIa: Catherwood Library Wing, starts May 2000, 12-15 months

All three floors of the library wing will undergo extensive rehabilitation. Every other seat in the reading room that dominates the reference area on the second floor will have power and Internet connections to accommodate users with laptop computers. Two electronic study/research rooms within the library will be equipped with distance learning technology. The first floor will house periodicals and materials on reserve and include a silent study reading room. The third-floor stack area will be climate controlled for long-term preservation of books. The redesign also will create a study space that will remain open during heavy study periods when the main library is closed.

Phase IIb: Conference Center, Extension, Research buildings, starts summer 2001, 15-18 months

To help accommodate ILR Extension's dozens of adult learning programs as well as the needs of the larger ILR and Cornell communities, the redesigned center will have nine professionally finished meeting rooms. Among them will be a room that accommodates 90 participants and has state-of-the-art technology. The buildings also will have a more prominent public entrance and reception area, more functional office space and a staff lounge. The current attic on the top floor will be converted into a light-infused amphitheater. A glass enclosed portico connecting the buildings will allow people to move between them without stepping outside. A covered walkway will link the buildings with others in the ILR complex. The satellite U.S. post office will have renovated, more accessible quarters in the research building - although it will need to find a temporary home while Phase IIb is in progress.

No campus roads will be closed during the renovation, but access to the ILR complex parking lot will be restricted.

The State University Construction Fund provided most of the funding for the project. David Christa Construction Inc. is the construction contractor, and Gilbane is the project management contractor. Fred Kotler, associate director, Cornell Construction Industry Program, a labor studies specialist, advised the State University Construction Fund on the project labor agreement. The agreement sets fair work standards, pay rates and other stipulations for local unions that work on the project.