University to create master plan
Meeting held in Davies to gather opinions on future developments
McLean Bennett
Issue date: 10/22/09 Section: Campus News
Schofield Hall, the historic Council Oak tree and various "green spaces" are all things that people at UW-Eau Claire said are worth preserving in the future.
That general consensus was reached Tuesday morning during a meeting aimed at gathering opinions on future developments at the university. The meeting, which was held from 8 to about 9 a.m. in Davies Center, was part of a process to draw up a campus master plan. The plan will help guide future campus projects, said Neal Kessler, who works with the consulting firm in charge of drawing up the master plan.
JJR, a consulting and campus-planning firm, is the company helping spearhead the project. Kessler said the idea behind a master plan is to help the university forecast future developments on campus.
"We have to plan so that we know where we're going," Kessler said of the reason for drafting the master plan, explaining that the master plan will help the university know what it's doing when future projects come up. "So it is a - it's a long-term road map, if you will."
People at the meeting sat in groups and placed green, yellow and red stickers on large maps of the campus. People placed green stickers on areas they wanted the university to "preserve," yellow stickers on places they wanted to "enhance," and red stickers on places they wanted to "transform."
Schofield Hall, Little Niagara Creek, the Campus Mall and the historic Council Oak tree got plenty of green stickers. People at the meeting also said they would like the university to preserve classroom space and the compactness of the campus.
The Council Oak tree today stands at the site of the previous Council Oak tree, whose image still serves as part of UW-Eau Claire's seal. Original plans to reconstruct Davies Center called for removing the tree, but a redesign process to accommodate it is now underway.
Zorn Arena, the Garfield Avenue hill and the stretch of Garfield Avenue that runs adjacent to the Chippewa River got yellow and red stickers, with some people later saying they wanted the university to either enhance or transform pedestrian safety on the hill. Updates to Zorn Arena also were requested.
That general consensus was reached Tuesday morning during a meeting aimed at gathering opinions on future developments at the university. The meeting, which was held from 8 to about 9 a.m. in Davies Center, was part of a process to draw up a campus master plan. The plan will help guide future campus projects, said Neal Kessler, who works with the consulting firm in charge of drawing up the master plan.
JJR, a consulting and campus-planning firm, is the company helping spearhead the project. Kessler said the idea behind a master plan is to help the university forecast future developments on campus.
"We have to plan so that we know where we're going," Kessler said of the reason for drafting the master plan, explaining that the master plan will help the university know what it's doing when future projects come up. "So it is a - it's a long-term road map, if you will."
People at the meeting sat in groups and placed green, yellow and red stickers on large maps of the campus. People placed green stickers on areas they wanted the university to "preserve," yellow stickers on places they wanted to "enhance," and red stickers on places they wanted to "transform."
Schofield Hall, Little Niagara Creek, the Campus Mall and the historic Council Oak tree got plenty of green stickers. People at the meeting also said they would like the university to preserve classroom space and the compactness of the campus.
The Council Oak tree today stands at the site of the previous Council Oak tree, whose image still serves as part of UW-Eau Claire's seal. Original plans to reconstruct Davies Center called for removing the tree, but a redesign process to accommodate it is now underway.
Zorn Arena, the Garfield Avenue hill and the stretch of Garfield Avenue that runs adjacent to the Chippewa River got yellow and red stickers, with some people later saying they wanted the university to either enhance or transform pedestrian safety on the hill. Updates to Zorn Arena also were requested.
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