We never imagined we would raise in excess of $400,000 following the 150th Gala Celebration of our founding at UVA. However, in the two plus years since, we have put those funds to good use, performing long overdue maintenance and improvements to The House. The following projects have been completed thus far:
Installed new smart HVAC systems on the second and third floors of The House, as well as both floors of the Outback.- Installed new Pella windows throughout both buildings, as well as new window blinds.
- Renovated all bathrooms: two in the Outback, one in the basement, and the main bathroom on the second floor (inclusive of two stackable washer/dryers). This renovation has received notable recognition – Barstool Sports recently awarded Phi Society the distinction of having the cleanest bathrooms of any fraternity at UVA!
- Repaired damaged trim and plaster throughout the house and painted the entire interior.
- Updated the Wi-Fi and electric, including LED lights.
Replaced all the furniture in the Chapter Room with commercial grade seating and tables.- Repaired rot on the exterior soffits and fascia, as well as upgraded downspouts and gutters.
- Replaced missing tiles on roof and repaired rooftop membrane.
- Upgraded floor in the entry of the house.
- Installed keypad locks on all exterior doors and bedrooms (to be completed this summer).
- Upgraded the kitchen: new ceiling, lighting, double ovens, and dishwasher.
- Obtained, framed, and hung every composite dating back to 1965 (as well as a few years prior).
Special thanks to Sam Sacco (Com class of ’67), Tom Robertshaw (Engr class of ’70), Jack Butt (Col class of ’72), Bob Humphrey (Com class of ’75), Hill Jeffries (Col class of ’77, Law class of ’80), Tom Wilby (Col class of ’85), Doug Glagola (Engr class of ’90, class of ’92), David Buschi (Arch class of ’91), Ed Schandlbauer (Col class of ’92), Mark Pinho (Com class of ’99), and several others who provided missing composites or helped us track them down.
And just as important as these improvements have been, it is equally important to ensure the house is continually maintained with repairs completed on a timely basis. To that end, we terminated our agreement with Piedmont Property Management and assumed those responsibilities in-house. Not only have we reduced costs by eliminating the middleman, but we are now able to ensure that repairs are completed quickly and thoroughly.
However we still have more to accomplish: all exterior shutters on the house need to be replaced; several of the exterior doors need to be upgraded; the exterior needs to be painted; we would like to install HVAC on the first floor; and we still would like to install a new, enlarged front covered porch.
