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Post by sader1970 on Jul 20, 2023 15:55:44 GMT -5
When I drove by on Monday and turning into Mahoney Way, there appeared to be a bunch of air duct sections piled high right at the extreme northwest section of the first Townhouse on the hill which I thought was strange. It gave me the impression that the A/C hadn't been finished but my limited experience is that this is not the last thing one installs in a building. I was not in a position to stop and look closer and/or ask anyone.
I'll go back to my earlier post when I spoke to the construction foreman who made very plain, it'd all be done "in July" whether that meant July 1, 15, or 31, I didn't think to ask.
But the Jesuits are out of Ciampi into the new place and I leave to Phreek to guesstimate how many weeks/months it'd take to renovate the interior to accommodate students instead of Jesuits . . . . but it has to be done by the fall semester.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jul 20, 2023 17:51:30 GMT -5
When I drove by on Monday and turning into Mahoney Way, there appeared to be a bunch of air duct sections piled high right at the extreme northwest section of the first Townhouse on the hill which I thought was strange. It gave me the impression that the A/C hadn't been finished but my limited experience is that this is not the last thing one installs in a building. I was not in a position to stop and look closer and/or ask anyone. I'll go back to my earlier post when I spoke to the construction foreman who made very plain, it'd all be done "in July" whether that meant July 1, 15, or 31, I didn't think to ask. But the Jesuits are out of Ciampi into the new place and I leave to Phreek to guesstimate how many weeks/months it'd take to renovate the interior to accommodate students instead of Jesuits . . . . but it has to be done by the fall semester. That NW corner by Mahoney Way is where there is to be a dumpster. The dumpster entrance is opposite the entrance to Public Safety in The Jo. So perhaps the duct wok is headed to a recycling facility, or to the subcontractor's yard. They could do the modifications to Ciampi in phases, the first now, followed by a second next summer. I assume the chapel is deconsecrated, and will be altered. I assume there were offices for the superior and rector of the community. Will these remain as offices, and for who? I believe there is also a library. I am surprised the new residence is yet to be named. Perhaps there is no agreement or even consensus among the Jesuits on a name.
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Post by longsuffering on Jul 23, 2023 14:36:18 GMT -5
I don't know if this has been covered. It was 59 degrees overnight but what if the heat dome finally settles over Worcester during the first few weeks of classes? How many HC dorm rooms are not air conditioned? If it got insufferable could they set up cots in air conditioned spaces?
Is the indoor practice facility in the Luth air conditioned while the adjacent Hart basketball arena is not? It cerainly wasn't during the hot and clammy PL championship games during the Willard era. I assume the Jo and other recent buildings have AC and while I never thought about it, assume the circa 1968 Hogan Center has AC.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jul 23, 2023 18:09:08 GMT -5
The July 21 3-4 week forecast from the National Weather Service calls for below normal temperatures in New England, and above normal amounts of precipitation. Forecast is always subject to change, But more likely to go from below normal to normal than from below normal to above normal/
A/C is installed throughout Luth. Big chillers on the roof.
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Post by Crucis#1 on Jul 26, 2023 19:59:26 GMT -5
As of tonight, neither the new townhouses or the new Jesuit residence have been named.
Opportunity is there for Jesuit residence to be named the Crossports Jesuit Abode.
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Post by DiMarz on Jul 26, 2023 20:06:11 GMT -5
I don't know if this has been covered. It was 59 degrees overnight but what if the heat dome finally settles over Worcester during the first few weeks of classes? How many HC dorm rooms are not air conditioned? If it got insufferable could they set up cots in air conditioned spaces? Is the indoor practice facility in the Luth air conditioned while the adjacent Hart basketball arena is not? It cerainly wasn't during the hot and clammy PL championship games during the Willard era. I assume the Jo and other recent buildings have AC and while I never thought about it, assume the circa 1968 Hogan Center has AC. I believe all of the Luth is air conditioned. When I stopped in at practice a few weeks back, The Blaney court was COLD to me....I went to my car and found a golf jacket to wear inside!!!
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Post by longsuffering on Jul 27, 2023 2:02:42 GMT -5
The kids who live in Carlin and Alumni could sleep in the Luth in a heat emergency.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Aug 10, 2023 7:20:48 GMT -5
The townhouses look to be done, except for stabilizing the slope between the eastern townhouse and The Jo. The erosion of the slope appears to have been unanticipated.
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Post by mm67 on Aug 10, 2023 8:46:07 GMT -5
The townhouses look to be done, except for stabilizing the slope between the eastern townhouse and The Jo. The erosion of the slope appears to have been unanticipated. Amazed the likelihood of erosion was not anticipated. It was obvious to me. Terrace the slope w/ small retaining walls? Plant a few small bushes on the flat terraced piece(s)?
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Aug 18, 2023 11:28:25 GMT -5
Sidewalk Superintendent's Report: August 18, 2023 The landscape contractor hydroseeded the north-facing ground at both townhouses on Wed.-Thurs. Heavy rain band moved through this morning. Once again, it appears that much of the hydroseed mix on the north slope of the 'hillside' at the east townhouse has washed away. What appear to be small gullies can be seen on the webcam.
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Post by sader1970 on Aug 18, 2023 11:47:43 GMT -5
I also saw that but figured that only the two of us would notice or care and no need to post anything since you'd already know this.
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Post by mm67 on Aug 18, 2023 12:23:28 GMT -5
As a former home owner of 40 years I am amazed but not surprised by the failure of the architect/builder not to take the problem with grading into account. It will continue to be a problem which will reappear due to natural events, droughts & biblical deluges. Easy to give the big picture. The devil is in the details.
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Post by CHC8485 on Aug 18, 2023 13:28:02 GMT -5
I suspect the issue is not necessarily a problem with grading. It's a problem of at least one 2 inch rainstorms virtually every week in July and August. In a normal July and August, that slope would have been gently watered and in a month a beautiful lawn would be in place. Even if just "normal" Worcester summer thunderstorms had blown through, I suspect they would not have the problems you see rright now.
No need to terrace. One need only look 100 yards to the north to the lawn between the Jo and Wheeler and directly east to the lawn in front of Ciampi on the same or similar slopes, to see grass will grow on that slope and once it does, it will hold the hill in place.
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Post by mm67 on Aug 18, 2023 16:27:20 GMT -5
Hope you are right. But, I learned years ago to prepare for the "once in a hundred year" rain event.Normal is not normal every year. Remember a landscape contractor saying, "If" we should get a 10 " rainfall event. I responded it's not a question of "If" but "When." I prepared for the worst. Then came Superstorm Sandy. (Gloria fizzled.) There were other anomalous rain events.Just sayin'. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. If it were my home, I would have terraced. or not built on the edge of a steep slope. Hope it works for HC. With great respect.
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Post by Xmassader on Aug 18, 2023 16:57:21 GMT -5
I defer to phreek and sader70 on this subject but I have a question. Wouldn’t sodding rather than hydro-seeding the area have been the better approach in view of the slope and the heavy rains this summer? Seems as if the sod would not have washed away in heavy rain and may have been helped by it to root more quickly. I realize that the sod would be more expensive but I wonder if the difference would be that significant if you have to seed and re-seed several times.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Aug 18, 2023 17:36:25 GMT -5
I defer to phreek and sader70 on this subject but I have a question. Wouldn’t sodding rather than hydro-seeding the area have been the better approach in view of the slope and the heavy rains this summer? Seems as if the sod would not have washed away in heavy rain and may have been helped by it to root more quickly. I realize that the sod would be more expensive but I wonder if the difference would be that significant if you have to seed and re-seed several times. In my unprofessional opinion, they should sod this particular slope. Several months, they stripped away the topsoil in replaced it with small stones.. That seemed to work. A week ago, an excavator appeared, scraped away the stone boulders, and loaded them into three or four dump trucks. The contractor then spread new topsoil in place. This was followed by the hydroseeding. They did appear to install a small diameter drain pipe running east-west, at the top of the slope. HC is responsible for doing the geotech borings to determine subsurface conditions. These were probably never drilled in this area. There is the possibility that a rocky ledge is near the surface, so the water is not draining., and the soil is saturated. The cost of the excavator and the dump trucks is probably similar to the cost of sod.
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Post by mm67 on Aug 18, 2023 18:12:59 GMT -5
Sounds like a cluster F#&K. Big money = Big waste of money. Sounds familiar?
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Post by sader1970 on Aug 18, 2023 18:21:21 GMT -5
I defer to phreek and sader70 on this subject but I have a question. Wouldn’t sodding rather than hydro-seeding the area have been the better approach in view of the slope and the heavy rains this summer? Seems as if the sod would not have washed away in heavy rain and may have been helped by it to root more quickly. I realize that the sod would be more expensive but I wonder if the difference would be that significant if you have to seed and re-seed several times. Glad you asked this "expert." I've owned 4 homes over the years. the first was the one and only time I had a hydroseeded lawn and had never heard of it until then. I lived in a town outside of Syracuse called Clay, NY. At the closing, the bank attorney happened to be from the HC Class of '67and immediately recognized my Class ring as a fellow Crusader. I will protect his identity here but is a long time Class of 67 chair (and not a Crossporter to the best of my knowledge). As a fellow HC Class Chair, I've seen him a number of times at events on the hill. Good guy like all the 67's. So, what's that got to do with anything? He told me that the town of Clay was called that for a reason . . . . . because the soil is clay there, almost like concrete. The developer/builder wasn't going to spend a lot of money on a lawn and he advised us he was going to give us a hydroseed lawn (I probably had to look it up in my 1978 dictionary). So, they spray the ''lawn" on and the dirt in front and back yards now have a greenish tinge to it. Perhaps a week or two later, it rains. Not a deluge but a nice, steady rain. Our front yard has a bit of a grade and . . . . . I sadly watched my entire 'lawn' slide down into the street gutter and down the sewer. No hydro seeding when we moved back to LI but the house in Ohio had the most luscious, thick, green sod in the entire front and back yard as part of the sale. Beautiful. Then RI, no sod, no hydroseeding but seeded lawn that took years and a gazillion dollars to look very acceptable but sod's got it beat. Bottom line: invest in sod on that hill for the reasons you've already stated. Terracing probably more expensive and not really in keeping with the rest of the campus, unless I've got a brain hiccup.
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Post by mm67 on Aug 18, 2023 18:47:58 GMT -5
I defer to phreek and sader70 on this subject but I have a question. Wouldn’t sodding rather than hydro-seeding the area have been the better approach in view of the slope and the heavy rains this summer? Seems as if the sod would not have washed away in heavy rain and may have been helped by it to root more quickly. I realize that the sod would be more expensive but I wonder if the difference would be that significant if you have to seed and re-seed several times. Glad you asked this "expert." I've owned 4 homes over the years. the first was the one and only time I had a hydroseeded lawn and had never heard of it until then. I lived in a town outside of Syracuse called Clay, NY. At the closing, the bank attorney happened to be from the HC Class of '67and immediately recognized my Class ring as a fellow Crusader. I will protect his identity here but is a long time Class of 67 chair (and not a Crossporter to the best of my knowledge). As a fellow HC Class Chair, I've seen him a number of times at events on the hill. Good guy like all the 67's. So, what's that got to do with anything? He told me that the town of Clay was called that for a reason . . . . . because the soil is clay there, almost like concrete. The developer/builder wasn't going to spend a lot of money on a lawn and he advised us he was going to give us a hydroseed lawn (I probably had to look it up in my 1978 dictionary). So, they spray the ''lawn" on and the dirt in front and back yards now have a greenish tinge to it. Perhaps a week or two later, it rains. Not a deluge but a nice, steady rain. Our front yard has a bit of a grade and . . . . . I sadly watched my entire 'lawn' slide down into the street gutter and down the sewer. No hydro seeding when we moved back to LI but the house in Ohio had the most luscious, thick, green sod in the entire front and back yard as part of the sale. Beautiful. Then RI, no sod, no hydroseeding but seeded lawn that took years and a gazillion dollars to look very acceptable but sod's got it beat. Bottom line: invest in sod on that hill for the reasons you've already stated. Terracing probably more expensive and not really in keeping with the rest of the campus, unless I've got a brain hiccup. '67 John knows best. He's a great guy widely admired & loved by his classmates.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Aug 21, 2023 7:31:31 GMT -5
Bright and early, a small excavator and a dump truck are at the bottom of the slope. Don't know whether there is a catch basin on the Upper Campus Rd. (Mahoney Way) they are trying to clear or not. The hydroseeding on the slope seems to have washed away.
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Post by mm67 on Aug 21, 2023 7:42:21 GMT -5
Drainage problems were easily foreseeable & entirely avoidable. In addition, in the first place, it is a very poor location for residences in relation to the rest of the campus. Wasteful spending all around. Proper Planning & Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. Peace.
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Post by Crucis#1 on Aug 22, 2023 8:00:52 GMT -5
Another coating of hydro seeding was applied this morning, a few minutes ago. A diligent sidewalk supervisor is needed on spot as they have missed several spots when using the application today.
Also, it appears that the first group of students, possibly RA’s are now occupying the townhouses.
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Post by sader1970 on Aug 22, 2023 9:55:55 GMT -5
What we need is another really good rain to wash it down the drain again to convince TPTB to raise the white flag and lay down some sod. Oh, how 'bout some astroturf?
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Post by sader1970 on Aug 22, 2023 10:02:25 GMT -5
Drainage problems were easily foreseeable & entirely avoidable. In addition, in the first place, it is a very poor location for residences in relation to the rest of the campus. Wasteful spending all around. Proper Planning & Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. Peace. 67, outside of the fine use of alliteration, where would you have placed the Townhouses? I think one of the reasons they placed them where they are is for the very reason they are not in the middle of the campus. These will be senior dorms and they are trying to attract the older students to campus rather than off campus and while on campus, these are on the fringes and as I understand it, similar to what they might have if they lived off campus. How about where Williams is located, down by Freshmen Field (is it "First Year Student Field" now?). Believe my niece was the first group to live there her senior year but never asked her about location.
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Post by alum on Aug 22, 2023 10:07:03 GMT -5
A bunch of guys complaining about someone else's lawn. How to say we are all old without saying we are all old.
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