Blasting Into Atwater

Author: Dan Polifka

Upon completion of Ross Commons this fall, work was well underway on the improvement of another commons, Atwater.
This marks the second series of construction projects undertaken by the College to enhance residential life at Middlebury. The building of two new senior residence halls and a dining hall for the commons is being overseen by Lee Kennedy Co., Inc. of Boston.
The overhaul of Atwater Commons, which currently includes Allen and Coffrin Halls as well as Le Château, should be finished by autumn of 2004. The new residence halls will house 150 upper-class students in the form of three, four and five-room suites. The dining hall, which, according to Atwater Dean Scott Barnicle, will have a roof situated close to ground level and covered in plants so as to mesh with the surrounding environment, will have room for approximately 225 people.
The new spaces will also provide picturesque panoramas for diners and inhabitants alike. Since the new buildings are to be erected between Allen and Coffrin and further away from the center of campus, they will have unobstructed views of the Green Mountains.
While aesthetic appeal is certainly a factor, it is clear that planners have not lost sight of the main objective. "The goal here," explained Barnicle, "is to create a recognizable community. When students eat, it is not that they will eat here all the time, but they will usually stay near home. The new decentralized dining will give people a set of friendly faces."