Mortimer's Mansion gets an update

Home, sweet home gets sweeter
The $14 million renovation of Macdonough Hall is complete at Plattsburgh State University.

That's the dorm where Kris and I met when we each lived there for the first couple of years of college.

They closed the dorm down in May 2004 and spent the last year gutting the building, one of the oldest on the campus, and completely updating it.

I'd love to get a look at the place, which now features suites, computer labs and a flat-screen TV in the main lounge.

Since my time at Plattsburgh (11 years ago) all of the dorm rooms now are also equipped with cable TV and Internet access. Macdonough also now has Wi-Fi access.

The Plattsburgh Press Republican has all sorts of quotes from various college officials singing the praises of the new and improved dorm. However, there is no word on the reaction of Mortimer -- the legendary ghost that many believe has been calling Macdonough Hall home for decades.

It sounds like a lot of changes have been made to the basement, which now includes a computer lab, laundry rooms and a new entrance leading to the courtyard behind the dorm (or the "backyard" as we used to call it).

I'm not sure what to make of the basement changes. I was a "cellar dweller" in my sophomore year. Those of us who lived in the basement thought it was one of the best kept secrets on campus -- and we kind of liked it that way. Very few people ever came to the basement. We didn't have our own RA either. The RA above us on the first floor was supposed to be responsible for us. So we pretty much had the place to ourselves.

There were only about five or six dorms rooms down there. The rest of the space contained locked off storage and bomb shelters that were always fun to try to get into and explore. The locked off portions were referred to as "the catacombs." In my freshman year I designed the dorm T-shirt. It had a picture of Hobbes of "Calvin and Hobbes" dressed like Indiana Jones. Over the picture was a logo reading "Macdonough Hobbes and the Catacombs of Peril."

Macdonough was a fantastic place to live. It sounds like it will be even more fantastic for the kids going there now. Kris and I have fond memories of Macdonough. Hopefully we'll be able to get a look at the new and improved version soon.

Thanks, Aaron.