New house for Wiess masters set to break ground in February

By Jocelyn Wright     1/14/10 6:00pm

Construction of the Wilson House, the brand-new Wiess College masters' house, will begin next month. The house is named after longtime Wiess Resident Associate Bill Wilson, who died last spring. The construction should be completed by the end of the year, and the house is aiming for silver Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification, Project Manager Tina Hicks said. The house will be located next to the east side of Wiess by the South Power Plant. Facilities, Engineering and Planning Manager of Communications Susann Glenn said the cost of construction will be paid for by a donation from Wilson's estate, supplemented by money from Housing and Dining.

The house, which will have three bedrooms instead of the four in the current Wiess masters' house, will be slightly smaller and boast much more modern architecture. The smaller size will help it meet its LEED certification, Hicks said.

"LEED guidelines for homes are all about living smaller, so it was a challenge with this house because public areas serve a really important function," Hicks said. "We had to be mindful of trying to do both at once."

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Hicks said the house will have two courtyards with concrete patios and crushed stone for gatherings, and the house's entrance will be on the face closest to Wiess.

Wiess Master Mike Gustin said he worked closely with the architect to ensure that the house was friendly to students.

"One thing that went back and forth between the architects and myself was balancing student accessibility and privacy for the masters," Gustin said. "So little minor things came up to make students feel more welcome in the courtyard, such as having double doors to make the space more open."

The house will also have a "green" roof, which in this case will be a reflective white roof, Glenn said. The project will also get LEED points for reusing the maple wood flooring from Autry Court on the second floor of the house, and installing Energy Star-certified appliances.

Once Gustin and his wife, Denise, move into the new house during winter recess, Hanszen College Masters Rob and Ann Griffin will move into the old Wiess masters' house, which used to be the Hanszen College masters' house before new Wiess was built in 2002. Housing and Dining will then move its offices from the Baker masters' house to the current Hanszen masters' house.

Gustin said he expected the closer proximity of the Wiess and Hanszen masters' houses to enhance the relationship between the masters and their colleges.

"Some of the masters' houses are really more embedded with their college, while there's a little more of an expanse between Hanszen and its masters' house and Wiess and its current masters' house, so the fact that they're bringing them closer will make it easier for people to hang out," Gustin said.

Wiess College junior Mary Dozier said she is looking forward to the new house.

"I think it sounds great, especially because [the current Wiess masters' house] used to belong to Hanszen," Dozier said.

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