Construction of Reynolds Journalism Institute nears completion

Scott Keith, left, supervisor of MU’s Landscape Services, talks with worker Jon Bethmann on MU’s Francis Quadrangle on Monday. Keith said the workers are ripping up compacted soil so they can later lay new sod on the ground.   ¦  JIM BUELL

COLUMBIA —Not too long ago, half of the quadrangle was a home to construction equipment that helped build the Reynolds Journalism Institute, including a tarp that covered all the affected ground. The tarp was recently removed.

Construction workers for Kozeny-Wagner/Sircal contractors also began moving furniture into the journalism institute on Monday.

Kozeny-Wager’s Web site lists customers such as Anheuser-Busch and several city holdings; the site says the key to their success “lies in its people. Every construction project reflects the spirit and talent of the people who build it.”

The company is based in Arnold, and Sircal Contracting is based in Columbia.

Construction on the journalism institute is scheduled to be completed by the beginning of the fall semester, though it was originally planned to be finished the year before. A current view of developments can be seen via a webcam mounted on Gannett Hall, a building within the quadrangle. According to the School of Journalism’s Web site, the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation gave $31 million in February 2004 to build the institute and “the new center will focus on advanced studies of journalism and its role in democratic societies.”