By Elliott Nace | Staff Writer
Brooks Dining Hall will fully reopen on Feb. 10 following a maintenance-driven closure that began on Jan. 26.
During routine maintenance, staff found that the dining hall was suffering from a gas issue as well as falling ceiling tiles due to water damage.
University spokesperson Lori Fogleman released a statement detailing the timeline for the reopening.
“We anticipate that Brooks Dining Hall will reopen in time for the Feb. 9, Sunday dinner for Brooks College residents and fully reopen to the campus community on Monday, Feb. 10,” Fogleman said.
The two issues, which were being fixed concurrently, were identified and have been promptly addressed by the facilities management apparatus. Chad Crocker, assistant vice president for facility services in facilities management, addressed the events leading up to the closure in a statement.
“On Sunday, Jan. 26, our utility company, Atmos Energy, was completing regular service at Brooks Dining Hall when they discovered a minor gas issue that needed attention,” Crocker said. “Our facilities team worked with Atmos to complete those repairs as quickly as possible, and gas was turned back on to the dining hall on Tuesday, Jan. 28.”
Crocker explained that the ceiling tile damage stemmed from the combination of a leak in the dining hall’s roof and subsequent rainfall.
“At the same time, facilities is addressing a roof leak that allowed rainwater to damage ceiling tiles, causing them to fall into the dining area,” he said. “Because of this, we decided to keep the dining hall closed so that we could repair the leak.”
In spite of the swift turnaround to fix the gas issue, the roof leak continues to demand a sustained maintenance initiative. According to Crocker, the ongoing repairs have been a joint effort between the immediate Brooks Dining Hall staff, facilities, and TDIndustries’ ability to quickly involve a Waco roofing company.
Fogleman noted that the collective effort of university resources and local partners helped accelerate two otherwise demanding maintenance problems.
“We appreciate our facilities team, along with our service providers Atmos Energy and TDIndustries, for working quickly to get Brooks Dining Hall back online. And we appreciate our students for their patience during this temporary closure,” she said.
