Campbell Hall pt. 2 - "Building Systems"

April 2025.

Back to part 1 

 

I promise I haven’t fallen off the face of the earth, I’ve just been insanely busy with schoolwork and this project has been relegated to the back burner for the time being. Luckily, I’m almost done with finals and I have time to get this one out of the queue. I’ll also have much more time starting next semester, so hopefully I’ll be able to finish the remaining campus buildings by the time I graduate.

I’m not going to rehash all the history of the building. If you want to read it for context, my first part of the series can be viewed here.

Photos

I’ll do the same disclaimer here as last time: I was wearing a hard hat and could not use the viewfinder on my camera, so a lot of these are “hip-fired” using the screen. The lighting was poor, so many shots were dark. I hope the commentary makes up for it.

I hate the look of these black windows, but they admittedly serve a purpose. The tint of the glass is meant to reflect UV light, and they serve as better insulators than the ones that were there before.

We started inside the 1960s building first, unlike last time. I’m not sure if insulation was yet standard by that time, but this part didn’t have it, so it needed to be added. The green stuff in the corner is insulation, the rest is covered up by drywall:

The building needed to be modified in order to accommodate some of the new equipment. If you remember the huge hole in the floor plates from last time, you can see here what takes up that space:

Also note the new steel beam shoring up the floor plate. 

Here’s a look at all the stuff that gets concealed under a normal drop ceiling:

Again, I really hate drop ceilings, but I understand why they’re necessary in contemporary buildings. Note the electrical conduits, air ducts, and copper pipes for water. This was also right next to where an electrical room will be:

Here’s that room with all the metal studs again--this time, the drywall is up:

Again, these will be faculty offices. They will have translucent glass walls to let the offices without windows get light.

I don’t think I got a picture of this area (the “Innovation Classroom”) last time, but it’s in the middle of the lowest floor. It looks very contemporary, so I doubt it’s going to be messed with much:

Here’s that weird basement room again. Apparently, that left tunnel connects to the steam tunnels under campus.

Another floor plan, this time for the fire alarms:

This room is going to be a bathroom. Note the heavy mounts for the toilets, as well as the 2x4s where the stall walls will go.

I think the top floor is going to be the only one with its original molding exposed and no drop ceiling, but I could be wrong on that. Regardless, the rest of the floors are still getting them.

I’m also bummed that the doors seem to have gone missing. This better be because they’re being refinished or to allow for easier access to the rooms.

We didn’t start in the atrium like last time because the workers were putting in special piles down there to support the building. Since Campbell Hall is so close to Mirror Lake, the ground is less stable.

Metal studs are up on the top floor of the addition…

…and now I’m on the roof! 

This was intended to show us the new mechanical penthouses that are being built up here, but I was too busy going crazy over my first time being on the roof of a campus building. As low as Campbell is, there were some interesting views to be had. Here’s Thompson Library and the roof of Lazenby Hall:

Cunz Hall, McCorkle, Ohio Stadium, and Morrill Tower:

Med campus:

This was mainly to show the penthouse itself, but you can still see neighboring Jennings Hall.

That does it for this installment. If I recall correctly, construction is running behind, so I’m not sure if I’ll be able to see Campbell Hall once it’s fully completed.