Fifty million dollars won’t be enough money to cover all the deferred maintenance projects at Loyola.

According to Ann Moss, assistant director of Physical Plant, it will cost more than $50 million to complete the needed maintenance around campus. Completing the deferred maintenance would involve upgrading all campus buildings to current standards. Upgrading all the buildings would include improving life safety issues, such as fire alarms, plumbing and improving the heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems.

The funds to complete such work have not been obtained yet, and a source of funds has not been fully identified, according to Moss.

There are a number of projects underway now and planned to start later this semester. The work in the Peace Quad, part of what’s included in deferred maintenance, is the return piping being replaced for the high temperature hot water supply.

Several repairs have been made necessary because of Hurricane Katrina, Moss said. Repair work on the roof of Marquette Hall has started, and work on the Danna Center roof is planned to start soon, Moss said.

Other planned work around campus involves waterproofing the exterior of St. Mary’s Hall on the Broadway Campus. The exterior waterproofing of Buddig Hall has started, and roof recoating has been started on Cabra Hall and is planned for Buddig Hall.

The projects were funded by the Hurricane Katrina Foreign Contributions Awards, a grant through the U.S. Department of Education. The grant given to Loyola totaled $1.7 million and was awarded in late August 2006. The awards were given to institutions of higher education that were damaged during the hurricanes along the Gulf Coast during 2005. The awards were funded by donations from “foreign governments and international entities” according to the U.S. Department of Education Web site.

“Loyola University is grateful to be a part of the relief efforts of those foreign governments who generously donated funds … These funds will assist us as we move forward and work to help the region recover,” the Rev. Kevin Wildes, S.J., university president, said in a statement when the award to Loyola was announced.

There are many projects that need to be done, according to Moss. The projects underway were chosen because “we had the money and it was necessary. They were very necessary. All of these were important and doable with the money we got from the grant,” Moss said.

The work on the front door of Marquette Hall is not part of the deferred maintenance work being done, Moss said. The door had aged and is being replaced.

Tara Templeton can be reached at [email protected].