Two houses were demolished this summer on West Lincoln Terrace to make room for a parking lot which is now under construction.

Conrad Miller, Physical Plant assistant director, said Elliot and Wood Contractors of DeKalb demolished the house and removed the debris. The demolition and removal cost $15,000.

The physical plant’s grounds department will take over after the contracting company is done. “The grounds department will be grading the site and will put gravel out,” Miller said. The parking lot will have a gravel surface until it is paved next semester, he said.

The new parking lot will accommodate about 25 vehicles, he said. The lot will include blue reserved spaces and spaces with parking meters.

The decision to create a parking lot in the area was a quick one, Miller said. “It moved rather rapidly, and within the last year, there was consideration for this parking facility.”

The parking lot will accompany the new locations of the campus parking office and visitor information center, Miller said. The parking office will move out from the security building next to the University Health Service to the Duramad House at 121 Normal Road.

The house’s renovation should be completed in about four to five months, Miller said.

Pat Hewitt, NIU associate vice president of business and operations, said the idea for a visitor information center came from NIU President John La Tourette. The center’s purpose is to supply visitors with information about the campus and answer their questions.

Miller said the new location will be more accessible to cars coming from Lincoln Highway.

Hewitt agreed. “It is a good thing to get on campus. The center will only be giving information assistance and not programmatic advice.”

Visitors can pick up information in the parking office as well as the information center. General facts about NIU are available at the Holmes Student Center.

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