University of Otago - Music & Performing Arts
Posted by Celia Biggs / 13 July 2017
The University of Otago has announced plans to build a $26 million facility for music and performing arts.
The project would be completed by 2019 and include a new building beside the Robertson Library in Union St East and the refurbishment of the music suite, teaching wing and tower block at the College of Education campus.
Use of the university's existing recording studio on Albany St has been restricted to staff and students since the discovery of asbestos in May last year.
Music technician Stephen Stedman said confirmation the project would happen was ''very good news''. The new studio would be two storeys for acoustic purposes and each studio space would be designed as a box-in-a box to provide noise isolation.
The studio would connect to the existing college music suite via a first-floor walkway. About 45 parking spaces beside the Robertson Library would be lost because of the new building. However, 150 new spaces would be available in a car park constructed on the former Wickliffe site on the corner of Clyde and Albany Sts.
University of Otago chief operating officer Stephen Willis said the next steps for the project were finalising the designs and applying for resource consents.
About 4,000 students are taught the music programme each year.
