Time and money are important considerations on Capitol Hill as they are everywhere, but space is a similarly important factor in minimizing inconvenience to Members and staff during building renovation projects.

It is simply impossible to do major facilities renovation without moving building occupants into temporary space while working on their permanent quarters. The Dirksen Senate Office Building Renovation Project is often referred to as the "Stealth Renovation Project" because, aside from those temporarily dislocated, the work has been going on almost without being noticed. That began to change in summer 2000, when one of the automated Senate subway stops in the Dirksen Building was closed temporarily so work could go forward on an escalator and hallway.

The comprehensive, multifaceted project that began in 1999 will modernize all of the support systems within the Dirksen Senate Office Building and provide a new infrastructure for the planned telecommunications improvements.

The project addresses the building in sections, approximately half of each floor at a time and in turn. It has been planned to ensure that occupants undergo minimal disruption in services. Before work is performed in a section, most committee occupants are relocated into a temporary facility constructed in the Russell Senate Office Building courtyard. Senators' office suites are temporarily housed in the Russell or Hart Senate Office Building. Construction began in the first building section April 15, 1999, and was completed on schedule less than eight weeks later on June 24. The project plan calls for each remaining section to be completed in a similar time period. The Senators and committees whose suites have been modernized to date have expressed great satisfaction with the results of the work.

For example, Senator Robert Bennett, Chairman of the Senate Legislative Branch Subcommittee, made the following comments regarding the renovation on February 29:

"When I came here, the Dirksen Building was considered the low-rent district, and Senators would start their careers in the Dirksen Building and then move out as quickly as they possibly could. I have nostalgia for the Dirksen Building because this is where my father had his office, and I was very content to stay here . . . . Now that it has been renovated--and mine was the first suite to be renovated--I consider that we are in the high-rent district.

". . . thank you for the truly well thought out way in which this building is being renovated. It is now work space that will serve the needs of the Senators for another 50 years. It is roughly 50 years since the Dirksen Building was conceived, and I am sure that we will get our monies worth out of it."

Completed in the late 1950s, the Dirksen Building was--as is generally true of major structures on the Hill when they were constructed--a state-of-the-art facility. The well-maintained building has served the Senate for 40 years. The present project entails the first significant upgrades and infrastructure replacements to the staff offices. It also will provide improved and quieter individual work spaces to meet contemporary needs and the building's increased population.

The primary objective of this project is to modernize the building systems in the areas of fire protection, life safety, electrical power, telecommunications, and heating, ventilating, and air conditioning. Major improvements include

• A new telecommunications systems infrastructure to support the upgrade of equipment and technologies in response to the goals and objectives of the Senate's Strategic Plan for Information Technologies. New cable trays and data rooms will facilitate recabling the building, allowing each office to be served with the latest network technology. The corridor ceiling modifications required for the cable tray system will substantially improve the lighting and enhance the aesthetic appearance of the corridors.
• A new electrical distribution system will provide improved power quality, capacity, and reliability. Electrical power will be distributed throughout each office by means of a new hollow metal baseboard perimeter raceway system, which will include independently grounded receptacles for computers and office equipment cabling.
• Expansion of the existing sprinkler system to provide 100-percent building sprinkler protection for increased life safety and property protection. In addition, the fire alarm system will be completed throughout the building and will be coordinated with the new partitioning plan.
• Replacement and reconfiguration of the existing heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) system to provide increased operating efficiency, controllability, and reliability; enhanced life safety; and upgraded indoor air quality. The increased efficiency in energy management capabilities will reduce energy consumption and increase building smoke-control capabilities.
• New energy-efficient lighting and ceiling systems in the office spaces to maximize flexibility of subdivided partition schemes, provide improved lighting with reduced energy consumption, and afford access to above-ceiling space for maintenance, upgrades, and renovations.
• Standardized office subdivision schemes providing a uniform approach to staff work spaces with sound and temperature control to provide for flexible office configurations.
• Permanent, flexible pathways to support improved security systems, including duress and intrusion alarms, as designed and supplied by the Capitol Police.
• Modernization of public bathrooms to incorporate ADA requirements and water-conserving fixtures.

The project will be constructed in two phases: one phase consists of the modernization of the main facility mechanical and electrical systems located on the 7th and sub-basement floor levels. Construction will be performed by contract and is scheduled to commence December 2000 and is scheduled for completion June 2002.

The second phase encompasses renovation of the office spaces and corridors on the ground through 6th floors. Construction is being performed on half a floor at a time. The first construction began on April 15, 1999 and was completed on schedule. The remaining construction on phase 2 will start on the ground floor and will proceed in order from the ground floor through the sixth floor with each floor taking 10 weeks to complete with full completion scheduled for December 2001.

The wiring of the committee rooms for the physical security upgrades are being performed during the sub-phases and are being completed on schedule.

All communication/data closets have been completed and will become fully functional as the phase 2 construction proceeds throughout the building. The center core bathrooms are presently under construction and are approximately 50 percent complete.

When completed, the Dirksen Senate Office Building will again be state of the art--at about a third the cost of constructing a new building to contemporary codes and specifications. The Dirksent Senate Office Building also is expected to serve as a model for how such projects should be accomplished on the Capitol campus.