Members of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity began the first phase of a $550,000 construction project on their house at 2034 G St. by removing furniture and cleaning March 23, said Seth Rosenzweig, the fraternity’s president. Renovations will be complete by late August in time for fraternity members to move into the house.

In addition to aesthetic improvements, the fraternity will install a new hardwired fire alarm system and other amenities to bring the house up to code beginning in about two weeks, Rosenzweig said.

D.C. safety officials condemned the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house in August, citing an inoperable fire alarm system, another fire alarm system that was not hard-wired, an absence of exit lights and emergency lights, blocked exits and excessive waste around the property.

While the frame of the house will remain intact, construction will include many new amenities, including central air, new furniture for every bedroom, high-speed internet connections, a new bay window, reconstructed front steps and even bigger lion statues at the entrance to the house, Sigma Alpha Epsilon member Andrew Hopkins said.

The fraternity will also make improvements to the backyard and front yard, members said.

-Seth Goldman