Construction forces Law School classes to relocate

Classes at the University of Montana School of Law will be relocated to Missoula Children’s Theatre and several other venues around campus as early as Friday, when noise and exhaust from construction may become too much to bear.

E. Edwin Eck, dean of UM’s School of Law, said arrangements have been made to host approximately 40 to 45 classes elsewhere, due to construction for the addition of a wing on the east side of the building.

Mike Panisko, Project Construction Manager at UM’s Facilities Services, said excavation of the area to the south and east of the Law School will begin as soon as the weather permits.

The excavation should have begun earlier this week, but freezing temperatures made it too inefficient, Panisko said. Diesel engines perform poorly at temperatures below zero and the frozen ground is more difficult to break up.

Another concern is the exhaust from construction equipment. Vents located on the roof of the building are designed to bring clean air inside. But diesel exhaust will be pumping into the air outside the vents.

“Weather is a big deal both in temperature and how the wind blows,” said Panisko.

By the middle of February, the sheet piling is scheduled to begin. Sheet piling is a process in which interlocking panels are driven into the ground with a vibratory hammer. Thick, corrugated panels will be driven well past the basement level to help support the Law School building and the underground steam tunnels while the addition is being built.

Panisko said that the sheet piling should take between four and six weeks and will be a much heavier noise than the excavation. Eck said that classes will be moved by mid-February, when sheet piling begins, but he is prepared to move classes immediately, depending on the level of disruption.

Classes will be held in spare rooms around campus including four classes in the Gallagher Business Building. Many of the morning classes during the hours affected by the construction will be held at Missoula Children’s Theatre on Broadway.

John Toima, facilities manager at the theater, said that six rooms have been set up to accommodate classes and one room has been set up as a student lounge. He said the rooms have previously been used for classes and that they will be made up with chairs and tables.

Regular bus schedules will remain active during the displacement and extra bike racks have been added at MCT to accommodate those who would prefer biking.

During their tenure at MCT, UM students may have to forgo some of the services that they’ve grown to rely on. “The students won’t have Internet access while they’re here,” Toima said. “We’re just not set up for that.”