The University has completed its summer renovations to Saint Clare Hall.

The project began the day after students left campus back in May.  Eleven members of SFU’s physical plant, as well as work-study students and some outside contractors, worked on the project.

“We were looking to give Clare a new identity, inside and outside,” said Don Miles, SFU’s Director of Residence Life.

Roughly $750,000 was spent on the project. Miles said a lot of money was saved because much of the project was completed “in house” by the Saint Francis physical plant staff.

“We didn’t completely rely on contractors for everything,” said Miles.  “We used a lot of inside sources.”

Clare features new motion-censored lights in its main lobby.  Also new to the residence hall are a fireplace, coffee bar and 42-inch plasma television.

Monitors that share University announcements were also mounted on several of the walls in Clare.  All the rooms and halls were re-carpeted.  Inside the rooms are new wardrobes.

The downstairs lobby resembles a smart classroom. There are now new tables, which can be used for both large and small study groups. There is no longer a pool table in the downstairs lobby – it was replaced with another flat-screen television, which includes an HDMI cord.  Also in the downstairs lobby are a full-service kitchen and vending machines.

“We were really looking for a modernized look for both the up and downstairs lobbies,” said Miles.

The outside of Clare was also overhauled and now includes a stone patio, chairs and tables.

“Everyone seems to love the new look,” said Miles.