Construction on the new HealthEU center began unexpectedly for some students. Sophomore Sam Lindo, who lives in the Colonnades Neighborhood, has a direct view of the construction site from his window.
“I had my windows open because it was a nice day and then I just started hearing trees falling down,” Lindo said.
Construction began in January, raising both excitement and concerns among Elon students. The project was announced in the spring of 2024, with the goal of being completed by summer 2026. However, the building will now be completed that fall instead, according to David Haught, senior director of planning, design and construction management.
According to Haught, construction is currently in phase one, which involves tree removal, utility work and reshaping land to prepare the site. After that is completed, the next phase will encompass building the structure itself, beginning with foundation and working up through structural framing and interior development.
The team is working to lessen student impacts by working during regular work and school hours and creating physical barriers between students and the construction.
“We’re trying to limit the impact on the students as far as the start time during the day, and we’re trying to protect the students — the perimeter fence has been built to maintain safety around the site work,” Haught said. “Most of the work will be done during regular work hours, so class hours, and then work will continue through the summer break.”
For now, students such as Lindo are disappointed about the changing landscape of the field, which provided views for students in the Colonnades Neighborhood.
“I don’t like that they tore down all of the trees,” Lindo said. “I had a nice forest view and now it’s all just construction.”
Freshman Samantha Degree also mentioned concerns about the construction’s appearance, but acknowledged that it hasn’t been too disruptive.
“It’s not the prettiest to look at, but noise-wise it hasn’t really made much of a disturbance yet,” Degree said.
However, the construction has also impacted Lindo’s extracurricular activities.
“I am a little upset that it is being built. I am part of the astronomy club, so I spend a lot of time outside with telescopes, so we often would use that field,” Lindo said. “There’s not a lot of light there so you can see the stars. But they’re putting a building there, and because of the plans there’s not going to be any roof access.”