An online petition urging campus administration to “powerwash the Newman building or demolish it” has hit 30,000 signatures, increasing pressure for action.
The petition was created by a final-year engineering student who claims he knew it was the right thing to do since the first time he explored the “south side” of campus. “I remember looking at this horrible brutalist building which was constructed out of filthy old concrete and thinking that it needed a good powerwashing”.
Efforts taken by campus administration to address the state of the Newman building in the past have involved erecting permanent scaffolding around it and constructing much nicer buildings around Newman, hoping that nobody will notice how ugly it is.
Advocates have pointed out that, due to its proximity to the campus lakes, the Newman building is an ideal candidate for powerwashing, unlike buildings such as the Health Science building, which is thankfully out of sight and relatively clean.
At the time of publication, there has been no response to the petition by administration. However, a similar petition started by Trinity College students to “Powerwash the Arts Block” has received close to 15,000 signatures.
Congo Jack – do the right thing
