By Cynthia Koons
That is why state Assemblyman Barry Grodenchik (D-Flushing) announced Aug. 16 that $30 million of the state's CUNY capital budget will go to the construction of a new facility, adjacent to the existing building.Grodenchik stopped at the college with Assemblyman Nettie Mayersohn (D-Flushing) and state Sen. Toby Ann Stavisky (D-Whitestone) to recognize the contribution outside the existing Ira Remsen Hall, which sports a cornerstone dating the building back to 1949.”This money is just a start,” Grodenchik said in a statement. “But it will help the college enhance its already excellent facilities and attract intellectual minds from around the city to partake in the wonderful CUNY tradition.”Queens College President James Muyskens welcomed the state contribution.”Last night I was with some of my student leaders at a retreat and they asked me what I liked about my job and I said it's the best job in the world, and that's because of things like this,” he said. “Just a few minutes ago some of my faculty were telling me how bad this building was.”He said the college never could have afforded to upgrade the building without this money. The state budget left $1.38 billion total for capital projects at CUNY, Stavisky said, and $27.3 million in new money for the operating budget.Gov. George Pataki vetoed many of the additional money the Legislature set aside for CUNY projects, but the money for the Queens College renovations were spared the ax because it was included in Pataki's initial budget, Grodenchik said.”The state of the art changes constantly and we can't keep up with the state of the art,” he said. “This will happen, I hope, very quickly.”For Chemistry Department Chairman William Hersh the building cannot be built fast enough.His biggest complaint with the Ira Remsen Hall, beyond its wear and age, is the lack of air conditioning that he said leaves students uncomfortable in the summer months.Aerating chemistry labs is particularly difficult, he said, because some air must be siphoned out of the room to prevent people from inhaling chemical vapors. Because of this, the building could not be traditionally air-conditioned. He said the new building would be properly ventilated and air-conditioned. “It's a major operation to ventilate a chemistry lab,” Hersh said. But beyond just the temperature, Hersh pointed out how old and worn out some of the equipment was.”These are the original countertops from 1949,” he said, pointing to soapstone counters that were stained with more than 50 years of chemical spills. “The benches are pretty much rotting away.”The floors were missing tiles, which he said was another danger in case people tripped while carrying harmful chemicals. Tiles in the first-floor hallway ceiling were both missing and water-stained. “Our storerooms where we store chemicals are not up to code,” he said. “Over 50 years, safety regulations change and there's no way to keep up with the codes.”Hersh believes the condition of the building has prevented students from enrolling in Queens College's chemistry major program. Currently, he said there are between 10 and 20 chemistry majors at Queens College.”It's actually amazing we've had chemistry majors at all,” he said. He is looking forward to the opening of the new building, in 2008, to hopefully boost enrollment in the program.Muyskens said he is committed to improving the science programs at Queens College.”It's so important in Queens that we get the best science facilities we can get,” Muyskens said. Reach reporter Cynthia Koons by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or call 718-229-0300, Ext. 141.
