USF’s Engineering Research Building was a second home to engineering student organizations, who built models, welded and experimented in the building.

But the building was closed in May 2024 due to a slew of “ongoing safety and code compliance issues,” said Aaron Nichols, a USF Facilities spokesperson.

Over a dozen violations were cited in a USF Environmental Health and Safety March 2024 inspection prior to the closure, including clutter and a lack of training for using machines. 

But because students were not operating safely, their supervisor said it drew attention to bigger problems in the building – which ultimately led to the building being shut down.

Related: USF’s ceramics club is at risk after losing its facilities – The Oracle 

Michael Celestin, the college’s director of engineering, said it wasn’t a surprise the students were “shut out” of the workshop space.

“There has always been a wild west attitude regarding the students that work in that space,” Celestin said.

Before the building was locked completely, the student groups were given the opportunity to correct some of the violations – but they were not able to make all the necessary changes, he said. 

Celestin said although engineering is a field that requires physical learning, it needs to be done in a safe manner.

“If they were operating correctly and safely, the building would have never even been noticed by facilities to shut down in the first place,” he said.

Lucas Folio is the chief of safety for the Society of Aeronautics and Rocketry, a USF engineering student organization.

SOAR utilized the building to build a 9-foot rocket and other projects they brought to competitions against other universities.

“It was a second home,” he said. “I myself found that place as a comfort zone away from my own apartment, my own other personal issues.”

Over the summer, Celestin took over supervising the student groups after the former supervisor Chris Taylor quit in fall 2024.

Celestin said the students are “complicit” for not following certain safety precautions.

But Celestin said students are not the only ones keeping the building closed.

He said USF dragged its feet in repairing the building and held the department “hostage” with costly bills for repairs.

American Society of Mechanical Engineers President Quang Ho said the groups were initially not given a timeline for reentering the building, but were told at the beginning of March that the project might be done in 10 weeks. 

“We were left in the dark quite literally,” he said.

Celestin was given a bill between $1.5 million and $2 million for a laundry list of repairs, including key card access and a sprinkler system.

USF spokesperson Ryan Hughes did not provide a cost estimate, but said the engineering department would foot the bill. He also did not provide a timeline for the project at the time of publication.

Hughes said there is a project to “revamp” the building and add “significant safety upgrades.”

Folio said they have received an anonymous donation to aid in fixing the air conditioning and adding a sprinkler system – two of the larger repairs that are needed.

He said members of the engineering organizations were crushed when they first saw the lock on the door.

“I literally saw people’s faces just change immediately, as if their apartment burned down or something,” he said.

Folio said now is one of the worst times to be displaced because it is competition season, but “fully understands” why they were locked out of the building.

“The ENR building was in its worst-case scenario,” he said.

And, the inspection reflects that.

Hughes said they are working on adding “appropriate spaces for machinery” and exhaust fans.

In the meantime, he said the College of Engineering faculty has helped the students find a new place to work.

SOAR and ASME have settled into the Design for X Laboratory for now after none of their off-campus options worked out.

Related: USF’s ceramics club is looking for a new off-campus home 

Other organizations, such as the American Society of Civil Engineers, found a spot off-campus at a workshop.

President Daniel Marola said there was a “lack of coordination” between the student groups to get the building up to code. However, he said ASCE is not at fault since they cleaned up their area.

Marola said being kicked out of the building led them to lose a concrete canoe competition against other universities.

“It is a very, very important competition for students,” he said. “I think we should have more support on that.”

Celestin said the high costs of and delays in repairs, compounded with the lack of student cooperation, have prevented the building from reopening yet.

“It’s really hard to find a central blame for all of this happening,” Celestin said. “It’s a cavalcade of failures in different areas.”