Phi Mu sorority house completes phase one of renovations

The previously pink house on Sorority Row has finished the first half of its face-lift.

The Phi Mu sorority house, at 1152 E. Panhellenic Drive, is done with its first phase of its new renovations. A three-story addition to the side of the house is the main feature. The project cost an estimated $2.7 million, said Chris Trowell, 46, the vice president of BBI Construction Management Inc.

The company teamed up with Walker Architects, both located in Gainesville, to bring Phi Mu’s plans to life, Trowell said. Construction began last May.

Phase one consisted of adding 7,500 square feet, a new library and gathering room and 14 more rooms to house 30 girls, Trowell said.

“Phi Mu knew they needed to add more room as more demand for girls wanting to live in-house has increased dramatically over the last four to five years,” Trowell said.

The project was funded by alumni and a savings account created by Phi Mu Alpha Nu Housing Corporation, said Ally Tacket, the UF president of the Alpha Nu chapter.

Tackett said member dues did not need to increase in order to accommodate the new additions.

“Our executive council was very adamant against prices going up for the girls,” the 21-year-old UF health science junior said. “We know that attending a large public university is a financial burden, so we made sure the new changes would be accessible to all women in our chapter.”

The renovations came after members of Phi Mu’s National Council, located in Georgia, came for a visit in Spring 2017. They said the house needed to be updated, Tackett said.

“We wanted a place for a larger space for sisters to have more area to live and to just enjoy,” Tackett said. “The new house is a wonderful place we all love and live in, but it’s our sisterhood that creates the sentiment of a home.”

The construction company will begin the second phase of the project in Summer 2019. Features include a new foyer and an exterior porch that will move the house closer to East Panhellenic Drive, Trowell said.

Paris Kemeny, Phi Mu’s 2018 UF pledge class president, said she and the rest of her pledge class could not stop talking about how excited they were to move in next Fall once all renovations are completed.

“I’m looking forward to the new library,” the 18-year-old UF finance freshman said. “It’s going to be so nice to have a dedicated, quiet study area with plugs for our computers and no distractions.”

Although the baby pink of the house exterior has now been replaced with a soft gray, house dad, Don Gaddo, 80, who helps manage maintenance of the house, plans to memorialize the old color. A 20 by 20 framed pink plaque will be added to the back entrance, with the words “Forever — The pink castle on the hill” engraved on it.

“It’s a memory that no one will ever forget,” Gaddo said.

UF Phi Mu Alpha Nu chapter finishes phase one of two of its housing renovation project. The full project is set to be complete August 2019. Courtesy of BBI Construction Management, Inc.