Recent construction projects have been a hot topic of conversation for all Cornellians alike. Whether it’s posting memes on Sidechat or listing day-to-day grievances with friends, this irritation is inescapable. What projects are currently going on at Cornell?
Most notably, Cornell’s clock tower, McGraw Tower, has been under construction since the summer of 2023. According to an article published by the Cornell Chronicle in March 2024, construction was expected to be completed by November 2024. However, the tower is still wrapped in scaffolding as of April 2025. The time frame on this project feels excessively long, though it is understandable that a building over 130 years old would need a protracted renovation timeline.
The main issues with the project include the restriction of pedestrian traffic between the Arts Quad and Ho Plaza. A fenced-in area utilized for construction purposes stretches across the entire walkway. With busy schedules and tight days, students have found the roadblock to be an inconvenience. In a school with one of the best engineering programs in the world, students are also left confused as to why there aren’t alternatives to blocking off such an integral route. For example, New York City uses covered walkways with scaffolding to keep popular walk routes open for general use. Furthermore, the ongoing construction has ruined seniors’ iconic clock tower graduation pictures.
McGraw Hall is also under construction. With an $110 million budget, the building is set to be completed by 2028. This project is not only creating more barriers for students who simply want to get to class, but also requires that the history department to be moved far from Central Campus. The department is now located in an old frat house on West Campus, creating a longer and more discouraging walk for students. This decreases their motivation to attend classes, show up to office hours, and visit professors.
However, Cornellians on the field hockey team may have been hit hardest by the ongoing projects. After Marsha Dodson field was destroyed, the team’s events have been relocated to Game Farm Road, an area off of Cornell’s central campus. To implement this change, Cornell will have to fund the development of improved parking lots and various amenities to compensate for the 150 average attendees of the school’s field hockey games. While many suggested the team could utilize the Ramin room, an indoor field in Bartels Hall, it does not meet the NCAA standards for home games.
These changes are not permanent, however, since the University began the construction of the Meining Fieldhouse, which is expected to be completed by the summer of 2026. This project encompasses an indoor practice, competition, and recreation space for varsity, club, and intramural sports teams. It will be a multi-use facility that can function as men’s and women’s lacrosse fields, a football field, and an indoor soccer training surface. This presumably includes a space for the field hockey team to practice and host home games. Though these changes will provide long-term benefits, it is important to consider their immediate impacts. Potential recruits may be deterred from joining the team due to the relocation of the field. The lack of warning given to Marsha Dodson (who contributed significant funds to the construction of the field hockey field) further casts a negative light on the recent construction. While removing a field to establish a better one is not inherently wrong, the University’s actions raise unnecessary controversy.
Though nearly finished, residents of Balch Hall have also dealt with disruptions to their Cornell experiences. Because of the construction, many of the women staying in the dorm often awoke to drills and clanging, suffering from constant sleep deprivation at the beginning of the school year.
Other buildings under construction include Atkinson Hall on 350 Tower Road. This is intended to be used as a research facility for various subjects ranging from cancer to sustainability. The Cornell Plant Science Building on 236 Tower Road, Tang Hall on Hollister Drive, and Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science Building located on 127 Hoy Road also have renovations in progress.
Cornell gets funding for these projects from various sources such as private donations, state funding, the SUNY Construction Fund, the endowment, and grant and contract revenue. However, private donors seem to drive a significant amount of current construction. These donors are donating remarkable sums of money, funding the majority of the McGraw renovations.
Additionally, Duffield Hall was given a $100 million commitment by Cornell alumni David Duffield. Originally built in the 2000s, Duffield Hall is a research and teaching facility for nanoscale science and engineering. This project is expected to be completed by 2027 and has brought much excitement to the various engineering students at Cornell.
It is important to be grateful for the generosity of Cornell’s alumni, as well as the various other financial sources fueling these projects, especially in a time when many colleges across the nation are shutting down due to financial instability. However, it is also important to consider the implications of these construction programs. Students at Cornell are becoming increasingly frustrated with blocked pathways, and potential Cornellians may be put off durng their tours by the diminished campus aesthetic. Furthermore, other groups are more profoundly affected, especially the history department and field hockey team. While Cornell students can (and should) be appreciative of the generous donors using their own money to improve the university they attend, it does not come without serious disruptions to life at Cornell.
