The clanks and bangs inside Morris Library will soon cease.

Dean of Library Affairs David Carlson said workers will do less work inside – and move outside – in the next two or three weeks, which should provide a quieter environment for students.

The construction, which began in December 2005, has yielded much progress, particularly in the past few months.

Workers recently added the roof to the top floor.

During the week of Thanksgiving, a helicopter will land on the newly completed roof to deliver a piece of heating, ventilating and air-conditioning equipment.

Carlson said the library would be closed because of safety regulations but he will be excited to see the drop.

Two floors below the new roof will be left unfinished until they receive more funding. The seventh and the sixth will remain incomplete when the rest of the library is done in fall 2008.

“The bids came in higher than hoped, but I’m quite sure the university will find the money,” Carlson said.

The problems are nothing new, Carlson said. The university had anticipated the budget issue from the beginning of the reconstruction.

Carlson said problems with furniture, fixtures and equipment, or FF’E, are the main budget issues halting the completion of the top floors.

Once the top floors are finished, Carlson said it would be home to conference meeting rooms and study rooms of various sizes.

Brick fa�ade has been placed on the outside of the first three floors, and workers recently began placing metallic siding outside the fourth floor. Glass panes have been put in the window frames, sprinkler systems are being installed, and the elevator wells are prepared.

Kevin Davie, a geographic information systems specialist, said the library would soon have temporary heat sources roughly the same time the rest of the university’s heat is turned on. He said there would be work done on the metallic siding on the outside of the higher floors. The rest of the brickwork is scheduled to be complete within a month.

In February, the elevator will be running for all students, Davie said.

Until then, Davie said construction would be focused on the north side of the building on the new addition.

Alexis Boudreau can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 255 or [email protected].