Cheney Hall shut down for repairs at Southeast; 85 students will be placed in other dorms

Cheney Hall, Southeast Missouri State University's oldest residence hall, will be closed through the spring as the building is examined and repaired. Students who were planning to reside there are being reassigned to other spaces on campus.

The hall was slated to be open for students this fall, but recent assessments of the building have shown a need for structural and infrastructure repairs, according to a university news release.

Over the past year, the university, working with outside engineering and architect professionals, has examined the maintenance needs for several facilities across the Southeast campus, university officials said. Cheney Hall is one of the buildings Southeast identified as in need of renovation for its continued use as a residence hall.

A combination of events over the past year, including recent heavy rains, caused some settling of the building foundation and stair-stepped cracking of the northwest corner of the building, the release said.

"In order to fully investigate and determine the cause of the movement, the university has made the decision to begin a full structural analysis which may involve soil borings and/or excavation followed by a structural evaluation by a consultant," Angela Meyer, director of facilities management, said in the release. "The goal is to stabilize the structure and ensure that the facility can be brought back online for future use."

Cheney Hall has been a landmark on the Southeast campus for more than 75 years.

Kendra Skinner, director of the office of residence life, said relocating the 85 students affected by the closure is a first priority.

"We have identified at least two other residence halls that we'll be placing the students in -- Myers Hall and LaFerla Hall -- but we are in the process of also looking at a couple other buildings that still had a number of vacancies available to us," Skinner said. "We'll be honoring the private rooms they had assigned and working to keep roommate pairs together and just trying to cause as little inconvenience for them as possible."

The students will pay the same room rate in other residence halls on the campus. The office of residence life is working with students to change their room assignments before they return to campus Aug. 20.

Additional information for students affected by the closure is available by calling (573) 651-2274 or emailing ORL@semo.edu.

klamb@semissourian.com

388-3639

Pertinent address:

Cheney Hall, Cape Girardeau, Mo.