Zumbiel: gone in 30 seconds
Months of waiting come to an end as space is made for campus expansion
Katie Rosenbaum
Campus News Editor
David Kohl
David Kohl
Greg Rust
The Zumbiel plant was imploded at 8 a.m. on March 22.
After months of planning and preparation, the Zumbiel Packaging Plant was finally imploded on Saturday, March 22.
Zumbiel’s end marks the beginning for the development of Xavier Square. Construction is set to begin at the end of 2008 or the beginning of 2009, said Laurel Bauer, the media relations coordinator in the Xavier public relations department. The tentative opening will be sometime in 2010.
Plans right now for Xavier Square call for the 20-acre site to include 550-600 units of new student housing. There are currently focus groups and surveys that are assessing students’ needs and wants regarding housing.
There will be 50-100 units of affinity, or market-rate, housing for the general public who want to rent housing in a university environment. A boutique hotel with approximately 90 rooms will also be included in this development. This hotel will allow alumni, parents, prospective students and other visitors to stay on campus while visiting.
The development will also feature 15,000 square feet of retail and office space. Other establishment ideas include restaurants, a grocery store and the Xavier bookstore.
In addition, there will be a new sports facility that will replace the O’Connor Sports Center. This sports complex will be open to Xavier students as well as members of the Xavier community. The health center will also be relocated to Xavier Square.
Before construction can begin, J&L Management Corp. of Mt. Clemens, Michigan must clear away the 30 feet high pile of rubble. This removal is expected to take two to three months, depending on the weather and other conditions.
Over 90 percent of the Zumbiel plant remains, including steel, copper and brick, will be recycled. This includes over 300 tons of structural steel. Light fixtures and other reusable materials inside of the factory will also be recycled.
Xavier, Cincinnati and Norwood police and fire departments secured the site for the implosion. It went off as scheduled at 8 a.m. and there were no complaints or problems with the implosion, said Bauer.
The intersection of Dana Avenue and Montgomery Road was closed after a dust cloud obstructed visibility and caused driving conditions to become unsafe.
The implosion was covered by local media as well as media from Dayton and Columbus.
Kathryn Rosenbaum
Editor-in-Chief
Rachel Peters
Ann Tassone
Darren LaCour
Senior News Editors
The Xavier Newswire 3800 Victory Parkway Cincinnati, Ohio 45207-2129 On-campus location: The Publications House, 3739 Ledgewood Dr. Telephone: 513.745.3607 Advertising: 513.745.3561 Fax: 513.745.2898 Email: Kathryn Rosenbaum
Editor-in-Chief Nathan Sergio
Advertising Manager Full list of staff contacts www.xu.edu/newswire
