With demolition of Phi Kappa Psi fraternity house complete, construction on new house begins
By Daniel Mather
April 3, 2012 7:29 a.m.
A jackhammer tore at the concrete foundation where the house of UCLA’s suspended Phi Kappa Psi chapter once stood, with the lot on Gayley Avenue covered by dust and a pile of salvaged lumber, during finals week of winter quarter.
Demolition of the building had begun about six months behind schedule. With the building fully torn down, the fraternity is now in the process of building a new, more spacious house in its place.
Jeremy Tillman, a 1999 UCLA and Phi Kappa Psi alumnus, said demolition had been delayed in part because of efforts to comply with the requests of regulatory agencies. He also said that financial issues had played a role in the delay.
He said the fraternity had set several dates for the demolition, but that they had been overly optimistic.
“It’s tough to build anything in West L.A.,” Tillman said. “Especially in this recession, with the banks and the general contractors.”
While Phi Kappa Psi was suspended in August 2011 for “risk management violations,” Tillman said the suspension was separate from the construction delay, and did not affect donations for the new house.
“Everyone would prefer it if the chapter was active,” Tillman said. “But the alumni remember their own time at Phi Psi, the good times they had and what they learned there, and they feel an obligation to give back.”
The project is financed by alumni and current members, whose donations now total $3.6 million, Tillman said. He expects to meet the fundraising goal of $5 million within a year.
“I’ve been asking people for donations, and nobody’s said no,” Tillman said.
Considering the recession, he was humbled by the generosity of the donors, he added.
Grant Penney, a second-year political science student, said he often visited friends at the house, and was nostalgic after seeing the demolition.
“I saw them ripping up the concrete, and, I don’t know, it was kind of sad,” Penney said. “I had some good times in that house.”
He noted, however, that it wasn’t a very big house, and there was no space downstairs.
Tillman anticipated the new house will be finished within 14 months. He said the major legal obstacles to construction had already been overcome during the planning process.
“Neighborhood groups are really happy with the new house,” Tillman said. “We’re providing more student housing, more parking and a beautiful new building.”
Allen Pulsifer, a charter adviser at the neighboring Sigma Nu fraternity house, said that noise from the demolition of the Phi Kappa Psi house has not bothered Sigma Nu’s members. He said their fraternity wishes their house could undergo construction similar to that of the Phi Kappa Psi house.
By the time Phi Kappa Psi returns as an active chapter in 2014, the new house is expected to be complete.
The national office of the fraternity could not be reached for comment. Members of Phi Kappa Psi also could not be reached for comment on the construction.
