Volume CXXXIII, Number 14 February 1, 2002 f

Goodbye Mr. Gardiner
FE VIVAS
STAFF WRITER

Bill Gardiner, Bowdoin's Director of Facilities Management, announced that he will retire at the end of the academic year after seven and a half years of service with the department.

William Gardiner will retire at the end of this academic year after seven and a half years of dedicated service to Bowdoin. (Colin LeCroy, Bowdoin Orient)

Gardiner came to Bowdoin on July 1, 1994 from New York. Prior to his appointment as Director of Facilities Management, he worked at Harvard University for five years, and at Smith College for eight years. He also served as Vice President of Colonial Williamsburg for 14 years.

Gardiner's opportunity to come to Bowdoin came at the same time that he was offered a position at the University of Virginia. He chose Bowdoin because he believed he could "make a greater contribution at Bowdoin than at the University of Virginia."

As a result of the contributions of Gardiner and his staff, the past seven years have been marked by great improvement in Bowdoin's appearance.
Most evident are the fruits of $100 million of construction that have yielded the construction of Stowe Hall, Howard Hall, Chamberlain Hall, Thorne Dining Hall, Druckenmiller Hall, Searles Science Building additions, Wish Theater, Moulton Union, the Coastal Studies Center, McLellan Building, the new Admissions Building, Quinby House, MacMillan House, and Ladd House. Vast landscape plans have also improved the environment of the campus.

Gardiner has also directed the purchase of strategic properties for the campus. Property purchases on Harpswell and Bath Roads extended the size of the campus and have increased on-campus dorm space.

He also aided in the purchase of the former Bowd-Inn, which will house the Outing Club in a few short months and Harriet Beecher Stowe House and Inn which many Bowdoin sophomores call home. Gardiner says that another focus of his work as director has been on improving community relations through "direct personal communication between the college and the town."

One of the most significant behind-the-scenes improvements that Gardiner and the facilities management department have directed is the "intensive major maintenance program." This plan's aim has been to mend the college's past refusal to do work on much needed facilities.

An audit in 1995 revealed that the college had $40 million worth of improvements past due; the hardwork of Gardiner and his staff have greatly reduced this aggregate of postponed work.

After seven and a half "great years," as he fondly refers to them, Gardiner says it's time to go. "I'm not getting any younger, and now that I've stayed through the College's transition to a new president, I feel in a sense, it's time to go."

Gardiner plans to continue living in Maine. "We'll split our time between here and our little cabin in the Adirondacks. I've got a lot of work to do up there, and we're looking forward to spending more time at the cabin."

"It's the people that make up Bowdoin that stick out," he says. "There's just something really special about the people here. It's been a nice place to work because of them."

When asked what advice he has for the incoming director of facilities management, Gardiner states, "Have confidence in the men and women in Facilities. They're very devoted, dedicated and loyal to Bowdoin. They've worked very hard to provide services for the college to make it a great place to study and live."