Turning deferred maintenance into transformation: Renewing a student center and a library without expanding

Two beloved but aging campus landmarks—Lehigh University's Clayton University Center and Wellesley College's Clapp Library—serve as case studies for deferred maintenance becoming a catalyst for transformation rather than a liability. Bob Mohr and David Whitehill detail how each renewal worked entirely within the existing footprint, converting backlogged repairs and underused infrastructure into flexible, student-centered space. They demonstrate how adaptive reuse preserved architectural character while modernizing systems, and how reusing structure and embodied carbon advanced decarbonization goals without new construction. They share decision frameworks for phasing work in occupied buildings, sequencing infrastructure upgrades, and balancing program ambitions against the budget and schedule realities of complex renovations.