University of Kansas demolishes 50-year-old residence hall (with Video)
A longtime residence hall at the University of Kansas in Lawrence was demolished Wednesday morning.
KCTV-TV reports that the university used about 750 pounds of explosives to detonate McCollum Hall. In 18 seconds, the 10-story, three-wing, 220,000-square-foot residence hall became a pile of rubble.
The university decided to tear down the facility and replace it with more up-to-date student housing. Two residence halls, Oswald and Self halls, opened in August.
McCollum Hall, described by KU as the university' largest and most diverse residence hall, sat atop Daisy Hill on the Lawrence campus and had been home to thousands of students over its 50-year existence. The facility was designed with traditional, two-person rooms, and when it opened in 1965, it offered living space for 910 co-ed students.
After the rubble is cleared from the demolition, the McCollum site will become a surface parking lot.
Video from KCTV:
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Mike Kennedy
Senior Editor
Mike Kennedy has been writing about education for American School & University since 1999. He also has reported on schools and other topics for The Chicago Tribune, The Kansas City Star, The Kansas City Times and City News Bureau of Chicago. He is a graduate of Michigan State University.