Hidden Secrets of LaForce revealed with Full Tour

Author: Bob Wainwright

A summer rarely passes by here at Middlebury College without some major changes being made in the absence of the students, and this year has been no different. Driving back to Middlebury along Route 30 after a long and restful summer, it was difficult to not notice the giant bubble that rests where the old, leaky roof of Fletcher Field House once stood. And incredibly, Ridgeline parking has finally become a bastion of hope for drivers returning to their dorms late at night, now that the lot has been expanded. But amidst other changes and facelifts, none are more striking, or perhaps more important, than the completion of LaForce Hall, the newest dorm on campus.
Attached to Milliken by a very long ramp, which meets the state requirements of 20 horizontal feet for every one vertical foot, Ross Commons' latest addition is clearly a force to be reckoned with. Not only does it boast some of the most spacious and sought after senior housing, it is also home to the newest dining hall on campus, an aesthetically pleasing facility that appears as if it could easily become the new set for the Food Channel's popular show, "Iron Chef." The name of the dining hall appears to be Ross, which is odd because it is located in LaForce, which itself is located in Ross.
But behind all the glamour and prestige of LaForce and its dining hall lie its deep, dark secrets — secrets, which may only be uncovered by a complete tour of the building along with our host, pre-architecture major and two-year resident of Ross Commons, Andrew Corrigan '02.5.
Our tour began in what Corrigan referred to as the "bowels of LaForce Hall," the basement. There, we found Eric, the gentleman who makes sure that everything is running according to plan within the building's hub. Quickly, he pointed out to us the two huge oil tanks in one corner of the room, as well as the steam lines coming in from underground and the backup generator. But what interested him and us the most was the problem of the two quads directly above.
"Those two quads will be hard to cool with all the stuff going on down here," Eric explained. "In fact, it will be a real challenge to see how well our cooling system ends up working." Apparently, only time will tell.
Elsewhere in the basement is the so-called Laundry Room, which is prefaced in such a manner only because it has nothing inside of it. Before leaving to go upstairs, however, Corrigan pointed out another room entitled "Bike Room," which he felt was an excellent idea.
The main floor of LaForce holds not only the new dining hall, but also several faculty offices, two seminar rooms, a library without books, a common room for which the big screen television is en route and the brand new Ross main office, which is the only door without a sign.
In one of the faculty offices, Corrigan and I discovered Onis Cheathams, associate director of admissions. Asked if she felt her new space was a step up from where she previously worked, Cheathams explained that this was the first year she actually had an office, having previously been stationed in Michigan. Cheathams also admitted that besides the "occasional man on a ladder who does something to my ceiling," her office was an excellent place to work.
In the office adjacent to Cheathams', Corrigan found the plans for the entire building lying on a desk. Being a pre-architecture major, he pointed out several interesting aspects of the structure, while making a few changes of his own to the work of Tai Soo Kim, a company stationed in Hartford, Conn.
At first, we believed LaForce had mistakenly been built backward, but soon realized the plans themselves required rotating.
Venturing through the unmarked door to the Ross office, Corrigan briefly talked with Commons Coordinator Sue Harris. She explained that she was originally nervous about the move, because she did not know if people would find the office easily.
After a few days of yelling out to people she heard walk by, however, Harris has been content with the number of visitors.
Moving on upstairs, the first suite we stopped by was Suite M. There, we met Sarah Weston '03 and Jenn Schultz '03, two seniors who seem very happy with their new quad. "The one bad thing, however," explained Weston, "is that since this is a wheelchair accessible quad all the water spills out of the shower onto the floor."
Schultz then pointed out the lack of air conditioning as another problem, only because the rooms supposedly have that capability. "Allegedly, we might also have to pay for cable," Schultz added. "But we're not sure about that yet."
Down the hall from Suite M, Andrew and I found Suite K, the home of Ben Dow '03, among others. Dow was very excited to talk about his new quad and spent several minutes trying to show us how the light in his bathroom goes on automatically upon entry.
"I do lament, however, the lack of a fan in this bathroom," Dow explained. "I see it right there, but it doesn't seem to work. This will be a problem."
Before ushering us out into the hallway, Dow pointed out the common room thermostat, a white box with the digital number 72 on it. "You see, every room in this dorm has a thermostat that no one knows how to work. It's a mystery. And it could possibly be there just to make us feel special."
On the top floor of LaForce, extremely large, individual singles replace the four-room quads. And once there, Andrew and I ran into Xan Williams '02.5, who was quietly reading an article for class in the floor's common room, which looks out over the Adirondack Mountains.
Asked what she thought of the view, Williams expressed her satisfaction and then added that she saw a girl walking on top of the dining hall roof the day before. This is probably not allowed.
Our tour of the building now complete, Corrigan and I slowly made our way back to the staircase.
But before departing we noticed a sign on the wall that read, "Do not leave your shoes in the hallway. They will be removed and you will be sad."How appropriate that in this new dormitory with all the conveniences and amenities imaginable, even the signs take one's feelings into account.