Photo courtesy of Aaron Chimbel
BY CHRIS DOODY, CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Construction of the addition and remodel to the John J. Murphy Professional Building has begun at St. Bonaventure University.
“The plan is for Murphy to be reopened in Fall of 2026,” said Aaron Chimbel, Dean of the Jandoli School of Communications.
The Murphy building will be entirely shut down and the surrounding area closed off until the projects expected end date of next Fall.
“After a lot of discussion with people on campus and the contractor, Duggan and Duggan, it made sense for us to just shut the entire building down for the year, and to do [the remodel and addition to Murphy] all at once,” said Chimbel.
Duggan and Duggan is a contracting company that has done projects before on campus.
“This allows them to work faster and be able to do more things at once, like shutting power off to the whole building,” said Chimbel. “They couldn’t do all the things they needed to do if classes were going on inside.”
All staff have been relocated out of the Murphy building.
“So, what that means is, this year, everybody: faculty, administrators, the advancement office and the Franciscan Institute, are out of the building and moved around campus,” said Chimbel. “Some won’t be back in Murphy, it’ll just be Jandoli School.”
Clubs that have been displaced have temporary locations until the construction is complete.
“There will be a temporary SBU-TV studio built, and a temporary [WSBU The] Buzz radio station set up, so students can still have their full experience, just in different places,” said Chimbel.
Chimbel said students should not be concerned about missing out on opportunities.
“The experience for students should be the same as a normal year, and less disruptive this way compared to if they were in Murphy while the construction is going on,” said Chimbel.
Chimbel said construction costs have not been fully met yet.
“The estimated total for the project cost is $12.2 million,” said Chimbel. “And we are at about $10.7 million committed for the project. Now is the time. If this school is really important to you, you can make a difference in helping finish off this project.”
