Features

Campus Compass
Page 3 of 3

A drawing of UNH's campus in the future shows new roads that will skirt campus and reduce traffic on Main Street. The north road loops behind Lot A and the Whittemore Center; the second, south of Main Street, goes behind the stadium. Long-term plans call for two parking structures. For more information on the master plan, visit http://www.unh.edu/cmp/.

The conference room in recently renovated Pettee Hall provides Bencks with another of his favorite views. Rudman Hall rises to the east, paying homage to its New England heritage with materials of brick, granite and slate, reinterpreted in a modern look. The new Gregg Environmental Technology Building is visible on the still-distant west side of campus. The two buildings are separated by the famously awkward and uninviting service road that passes beneath the railroad track. Next year, the construction of a new underpass between Morse Hall and Gregg Hall, plus sidewalks, trees and lighting, will provide a welcoming link to replace the narrow tunnel.

The cluster of service buildings along College Road will be replaced by academic buildings that will complete "the science quadrangle." In keeping with the modest growth goals for student enrollment, new buildings will increase UNH's research capacity rather than its classroom space. Renovations of DeMerritt, James, Nesmith and Hamilton Smith, for example, will include small additions, not big expansions.

Paul Creative Arts Center will undergo an extensive redesign rather than being replaced by a new center as called for in the 1994 plan, and subsequently deemed too ambitious. The $50 million expansion and renovation of Kingsbury Hall is currently underway, funded with $44 million from the state, and is scheduled for completion in three years. Meanwhile, $100 million has been requested from the legislature for academic building renovations. Since many campus buildings date from the early 1900s, the number that need major renovations is growing, says Bencks.

"Most architects work on a project, then go somewhere else," says Doug Bencks, UNH planner and architect, sitting on the porch of Smith Hall. "I get to watch each project come alive."

One area where there is a pressing need for increased space is student housing. UNH will eventually house 60 to 70 percent of undergraduates on campus, up from 50 percent now. On-campus family housing for graduate students, visiting faculty and new faculty will increase from 150 to as many as 370 units. Slated to start this summer is the construction of new apartments for undergraduates at the Gables. Some of the families currently living in Forest Park will move to the Woodside apartments, and eventually about half of Forest Park will be demolished and replaced by undergraduate dorms.

Like the housing issue, most changes require a long view, and will be affected by available funding. Parking garages designated for Lots A and B, for example, are penciled in for the distant future since they will be expensive and state appropriations can be used only for academic facilities.

Transportation decisions are often driven by a single question: How far can you walk in 10 minutes? "This seems to be about the limit of what's comfortable for people," says Bencks. When they are eventually built, the garages will help to transform the core campus into a pedestrian-friendly place, eliminating small, ungainly parking lots. The net result will increase parking capacity only slightly, from 6,500 cars to 7,100. Reliable shuttle service remains key.

Another transportation goal, the reduction of traffic along Main Street, will be achieved by the addition of two roads originating at the western gateway, the approach to campus from Route 4. They will loop around the campus core, and will make getting to the other side of campus much more efficient.

Some traffic improvements will begin as soon as this year. The stretch of Main Street that runs through campus, for example, will get an overhaul in 2005-06, helping to reduce the great divide between the two sides of campus. The western gateway itself will get a fresh look, too: better signs, a new fence and a tree-lined walkway. Vinny's customers will be glad to know that Conant Courtyard is also scheduled for makeover this summer. And yes, there will be plenty of benches. It will finally become an inviting destination, a gathering spot, a place. ~

Page: < Prev 1 2 3

 Easy to print version


blog comments powered by Disqus