Farmingdale State Celebrates Renovated Building

The president of Farmingdale State College, faculty, staff and students were on hand Tuesday to cut the ribbon to officially reopen Nathan Hale Hall, a building that had been closed for a multi-year renovation project.  

The rebuild, which cost $31 million, was funded through a mix of on-campus sources, and also through a substantial contribution from the SUNY Construction Fund.  

The SUNY Construction Fund is a public benefit corporation set up to fund construction projects at public colleges and universities state-wide. The design and layout of the building was done by New York firm David Smotrich and Partners.

The building will now serve as the new home to the Biology department and Visual Communications department.  New biology labs will allow more students to conduct experiments and research, and more office space for the department consolidates a once scattered faculty. For the arts, new gallery space and Macintosh labs will allow more classes to be held.

Originally built with the decor of the 1960’s, the building has been upgraded to reflect a more modern aesthetic. More windows were added to let more natural light into the building, and redesigned stair cases provide more convenient access to the building's three floors.

"It certainly looks far more beautiful now than then,”  said president W. Hubert Keen, who added that many students and faculty members have had positive reviews of the new spaces.

The reopening of Hale Hall represent one item of an ambitious master plan to upgrade many buildings on the campus.  The capstone of the plan is the construction of a to be opened in late 2012.