Penn State’s ‘fortress’ Hammond Building to be demolished as part of Sackett renovations
Penn State plans to renovate and demolish some buildings on campus as part of its College of Engineering master plan that aims to create a more inviting, open space.
The State College Borough Planning Commission on Wednesday heard the project plans to remove and replace the existing modern additions on the Sackett Building, as well as demolish the Engineering Units A, B and C, and the Hammond Building.
A goal of the project is for the Sackett Building to become an “engineering head house” for the dean’s office and the college of engineering administration, Melissa Clark, an associate at KieranTimberlake, said, making it more accessible to the students and faculty.
“We hope that this will inspire connections between the college of engineering and the larger university. It’s to become a hub for students,” Clark said. There will be lounges, student program spaces, knowledge commons and more.
Sackett is a “high performing building,” Clark said, and many upgrades in the site will be done for future projects. It is targeted to be LEED certified, she said.
The Sackett Building will be reestablished as a prominent historic building on the Pattee Mall, Clark said. The site plan shows that the two additions to the Sackett Building are about half the size of the current additions to the building. The inside of the building will be fully gutted as part of the project. The exterior facade will be fully restored, and the general budget for the project — based on public documents from 2022 — is just under $80 million.
The existing gross floor area in the project is 351,500 square feet, Shep Hoehling, an engineer at Pennoni, said, and that will be reduced to 78,700 square feet. The existing open space in the project area is about 1.1 acres and will be increased to 3.26 acres.
The project will reduce the overall impervious area by about 39%, Hoehling said, to be all open space.
The path from Fraser Street to Spearly’s Walk will remain. As it is now, there’s not an accessible pathway to get from College Avenue to the mall, Obelisk Gardens and Spearly’s Walk area, Clark said. But with the project, accessible pathways will be implemented.
The historic entries of the Sackett Building are not accessible due to steps. While those will be retained for the historic nature of the building, two new accessible entries are planned for the north and south of the building.
The mezzanine level that exists now will be “re-envisioned” to include more public space. The first level will have classrooms, knowledge common space, levels two and three will be administrative space and private offices for the college. Level four will be rebuilt.
The final plan is expected to be submitted by November and the proposed construction start date is 2024, Hoehling said. It’s planned to be completed in 2027.
Zoe Boniface, chair of the planning commission, said she’s excited Hammond will be demolished.
“I am very glad to hear that Hammond is finally coming down. It’s been pending for a very long time. And it comes from a time when the university seemed to want a fortress between themselves and the rest of the community,” Boniface said. “I like very much that it’s being replaced by an open space that invites the community. Very different message.”
