DeKALB | The opening of Cole Hall has been pushed back to spring 2012 from its intended opening for the fall semester.

Brad Hoey, team leader for NIU Media Relations and Internal Communications, said the delay was caused by “weather situations” in the spring and summer.

The 15,000 square-foot building, which has been closed since the Feb. 14, 2008 shooting, will house the NIU Anthropology Museum, a computer laboratory and a 300 to 400-seat lecture hall when it reopens. Hoey said the renovated building will have “state of the art equipment” in its classrooms.

Kendall Thu, professor and chair of the Anthropology Department, said he isn’t bothered by the delay.

“It would be better for everyone if was done in the fall, but its not something you can control,” he said. “I don’t have any misgivings about how the process was handled. One more semester in the grand scheme of things isn’t the end of the world.”

Hoey said the delay in construction should not have a major effect on students’ ability to get around campus when they return for the start of classes on Aug. 22.

“There shouldn’t be any other obstructions that have not typically occurred here during the spring semester of 2011,” he said.

Nicole Arteaga, a recent graduate of NIU, called the building an “eyesore.”

“I imagine that [the delay is] an inconvenience,” Arteaga said. “…The shooting happened so long ago that it seems like it should be finished, but things never go the way you want them to.”

Another student was also understanding of plans being pushed back for Cole’s reopening.

“It was weird to see [the building] all torn up but it is nice that the memorial is there,” said John Parr, global history grad student. “It seems like something they shouldn’t rush.”

The delay in re-opening Cole Hall will not force classes to a new building because no classes were scheduled in Cole Hall for the upcoming semester. Hoey said no classes were scheduled for Cole Hall in case of construction delay.