ROSS HALL

The building program for this building, as furnished to the architect in June of 1968, called for a net assignable area of 60,000 square feet, and with a total project budget of $3,000,000. The schematic drawings presented to and approved by the Board in December 1968 showed a seven-story building with an attached wing with three lecture halls, one story in height. The plans showed the site as due north of Curtiss Hall, with the lecture hall wing on the south side of the higher structure.

Uncertainty about financing resulted in temporary suspension of architectural work on the project between February 19 and May 22, 1969, following announcement of the state appropriation of funds for the project. Continuing high rates of cost escalation made it apparent that the building as originally programmed could not be built within the funds budgeted. In June the architect was instructed to delete one story from the seven-story unit and to delete the two 100 station lecture rooms from the lecture hall unit, and to include the low unit as an alternative in the bidding.

During the next year the drawings were developed and completed and bids for construction were received on October 6, 1970. As a result of the bidding it became necessary to omit the construction of the lecture wing entirely, and on that basis the contracts were awarded on October 7.

Concern had earlier been expressed about the location of the building, principally in the effect its shadow would have on the greenhouses to its north, and also its relationship to the long-range campus plan then completed by Johnson, Johnson & Roy.

The decision was then reached to relocate the building from the original site north of Curtiss Hall to its present location to the northeast of that building. That decision resulted in a number of objections, particularly from some students, but the controversy soon died out. Construction of the new building started in November 1970 and the building was occupied and in use in the fall term of 1973.

Ross Hall houses the offices for the departments of English, History, Philosophy and Political Science.

The building is named for Earle Dudley Ross who was a professor of history and College historian. He first came to Iowa State in 1923. Dr. Ross died in 1973, shortly after the building had been named in his honor.