Location of music building causes musical chairs

The new music building project, which appeared stalled for much of last year, is moving ahead now following a decision by the University about the future of the Zeta Psi fraternity.

The Zeta Psi house at 80 Professors Row will be demolished to make room for the music center. The University recently agreed with the fraternity to relocate it to 128 Professors Row. A building on that site is currently occupied by the Institute for Global Leadership, which will be torn down so that a new Zeta Psi house can be constructed, according to Vice-President of Operations John Roberto.

Though members of Zeta Psi prefer their current location to the proposed site at 128 Professor's Row, some of the younger fraternity brothers are excited about having a new house, Zeta Psi President Ken Kozlow said. At least the fraternity will not just be "thrown out on the street," he said.

"We're pretty bummed about having to move," Kozlow said. "There are definitely other places on campus that they could've put a new music center."

Zeta Psi has retained a legal team made up primarily of the fraternity's alumni to handle most of the negotiations with the University. The current brothers, who meet twice a year with Zeta Psi alumni, have made some preliminary suggestions for the design of the new house.

Tufts hopes to begin construction on the new music facility next June, but this is contingent upon receipt of $2.5 million more in gifts and pledges, according to Gary Lowe, senior director of development. The original deadline for breaking ground passed last spring.

A total of $10.5 million has been raised for the project, but the University needs $13 million before it begins construction. Last month, Tufts announced that two alumni, Stephen Distler (LA '74) and his wife Roxanne Kendall (LA '75), pledged $2 million toward the project.

Although moving Zeta Psi has ironed out one wrinkle in music building plans, it may start a chain reaction of displacing organizations. Tufts has not yet finalized plans to relocate the Institute for Global Leadership, which houses the Education for Public Inquiry and International Citizenship and several other academic initiatives.

"We've been put on alert that this could happen at any time," the Institute's Director, Sherman Teichman said. "We are confident that the University would give us every bit of support and find us an appropriate space."

The Institute's leadership is experiencing a "mixture between apprehension and anticipation" regarding the move." "The University cares deeply about what goes on here. We will do whatever the administration requires of us," he said. "We knew from the very beginning that we were tenants at will."

This will not be the first time the Institute has packed up and moved across campus. Two years ago, the Institute was moved from its first location in the basement of Miller Hall to the house at 128 Professor's Row.

Another move, although inconvenient, could actually benefit the Institute, which is "bursting at the seams," Teichman said. "Our space is fully utilized."

The move, however, could be disruptive to the programs run by the Institute if it occurs during the year. Aside from having the largest EPIIC class ever _ close to 50 students _ the Institute has a number of other projects in progress.

Teichman is also concerned about moving the building's delicate contents, including an archive of tens of thousands of files.

In the construction of the music building and the new dorm, some of the University's oldest buildings will be destroyed. The Dearborn House between Zeta Psi and Metcalf Hall, which houses the Center for Academic Excellence (CAE), will be demolished, and the music building at 20 Professors Row will be destroyed when the new dorm is built.

The Dearborn House was built by a professor in 1857. The current music house dates from 1854 and served as the residence for Tufts' first president, Hosea Ballou II.

Zeta Psi also was Tufts' first fraternity, and the brothers have lived there since 1900. The house was built in 1868 by a Tufts professor.

"The buildings have a certain significance in their relationship with the evolution of the university, [however] architecturally they have not been deemed to be historically significant," Roberto said. "The city of Somerville and the University have looked into it."

While none of the properties in question are listed on the National Park Service's Register of Historic Places _ which catalogs houses deemed worthy of preservation _ virtually dozens of other houses of a comparable age in the area can be found on the Register.

But because of difficulties in expanding into Medford and Somerville, "we have to look within the confines of the traditional University," Roberto said. Tufts' neighboring towns have resisted construction projects in recent years, and the University would face a political struggle if it tried to build on Boston Ave. or anywhere nearby.

There has also been some opposition to the proposed size of the new music building, as some feel the design will ruin the small-town feel of the campus. The new music building will encompass 33,000 to 35,000 gross square feet, Roberto said, which is "not overwhelming in terms of overall size or in relation to its surrounding buildings."

The music building will be "consistent in design in location with the university's master planning efforts," he said.

The music building also must be located in the center of campus because of a stipulation by an anonymous donor who gave $4 million to the cause several years ago. When people are donating large sums of money, Kozlow said, they have leverage over where the building is placed. "That's the way private universities work; we were left with nothing we could do," he said.

The University's plans for building the music facility are still not finalized, however. The building has already gone through several phases of design and development. Past construction plans have divided the building's construction into two phases, although "ideally, both phases of construction will be accomplished at the same time," Lowe said.

According to McDonald, the new music building will have three floors. The third floor will contain the music library and technical facilities, including a multimedia center. The second floor will house faculty offices and classrooms, which will double as practice rooms in the evenings. The first floor will hold the Distler Recital Hall, which will seat slightly less than 300 people.

The recital hall would host a large number of the Music Department's events, especially near the end of each semester. Non-departmental groups like the Beelzebubs, who have also donated funds toward the project, would be able to use the recital hall for concerts.

"The President wants [the new music building], the University wants it, and the students and faculty deserve it," McDonald said. "The music department is really anxious to work in a positive way with the administration to make it happen."