UVM and the UVM Medical Center are preparing for on-campus construction beyond 2019 due to the amount of buildings under construction.

Construction is divided into three phases: the STEM labo- ratory, the classroom and office buildings which are to be completed in 2019 as well as multiple smaller projects in Votey that will be started this summer and last around three years, according to the UVM Facilities Design and Construction web- site.

Votey, which was built in 1962, is in need of modernization, Robert Vaughan, UVM director of capital planning and management said.

The first floor teaching labs will be renovated first, he said.

“[The labs] will be re-located, some will be upgraded, the machine shop will be expand- ed and moved into the corner of the same general area,” Vaughan said. “Then some work on the second floor and work on the teaching labs up there, and possibly a research lab.”

However, the University has to update the infrastructure of the building as well, he said.

“We have to replace the cooling and heating coils that provide heat and air conditioning, replace the entire fire alarm system and add more sprinklers,” Vaughan said.

The whole fire alarm system is out of date, and though they have been “patching it up” as needed, the fire marshal has called for an entirely new system, he said.

One blue light between Kalkin Hall and Converse Hall has been labeled “out of order,” and some students have raised questions about the security of Central Campus due to the construction.

Junior Lydia Marchese, who lives in Converse Hall, has some concerns about missing a blue light.

“The broken light by Kalkin is my main concern really, especially if I’m walking alone at night, but besides the broken light I don’t think [construction] is detrimental to student safety,” Marchese said.

The University has informed every subcontractor that student safety is the first priority and it is part of their weekly safety meetings, Vaughan said.

As for the blue lights, he said he is making that a top priority.

“I’ll check that out because we actually did some extra work to make sure that they wouldn’t be out of order,” Vaughan said.