UIC Master Plan nearing end of phase two
Brittany Ashley
Issue date: 9/14/09 Section: Features
On Wednesday, September 9th at 1:30pm, there was a town hall meeting held on campus regarding the architectural plans that UIC hopes to implement. In this meeting, David Mann, an architect involved with the UIC Campus Master Plan, informed the attendees that UIC is "in the end of the second phase of a three phase process" of renovating the school. This phase includes the gathering of input from the community, faculty, students and anyone else with interest in the campus' expansion.
"With those dark narrow windows at UIC, you don't know that great things are going on beyond those walls," Mann added.
All students recognize that the campus' style is outdated. Walking through campus is like exploring an old army barrack; instead of grass and trees, we have cement. Dave Taeyaerts, from the Office of Campus Learning, says that "the Master Plan aims to make our campus more energized and cohesive." As pointed out in the meeting, there are three different options for each side of campus.
On the East Side it is still being decided what the fate of the iconic University Hall tower will be. Whether it gets renovated, broken down into smaller-scale buildings strewn across campus or getting moved to a different location is still undecided. Along with University Hall, the Behavioral Sciences Building (BSB) may also be removed, including its adjoined surface parking lots, in order to expand the campus westward.
Other possibilities listed on the Campus Master Planning Blog include: relocating student service functions from the far East side to a place closer to the center, like Taylor and Morgan, renovating the concrete Quad and turning it into a more landscaped area with a water fountain, adding evergreens for the winter and adding a streetscape. On the West Side, however, the renovation is based around expanding the medical center across Roosevelt and adding a Teaching and Learning Center.
During the Q&A session, a few members of the community expressed displeasure with this campus expansion. For students and faculty who live on the South campus, they are most likely familiar with the Sunday festivities at the church on the corner of Roosevelt and Newberry (a block west of Halsted). Their concern was that the area they have been allowed to occupy since before UIC was around would be taken away from them; they stated that their parking lot space was already taken, as promised that it wouldn't be in the past. But Taeyaerts assured them that they will only build on land that UIC currently occupies and will not cross over boundaries.
"With those dark narrow windows at UIC, you don't know that great things are going on beyond those walls," Mann added.
All students recognize that the campus' style is outdated. Walking through campus is like exploring an old army barrack; instead of grass and trees, we have cement. Dave Taeyaerts, from the Office of Campus Learning, says that "the Master Plan aims to make our campus more energized and cohesive." As pointed out in the meeting, there are three different options for each side of campus.
On the East Side it is still being decided what the fate of the iconic University Hall tower will be. Whether it gets renovated, broken down into smaller-scale buildings strewn across campus or getting moved to a different location is still undecided. Along with University Hall, the Behavioral Sciences Building (BSB) may also be removed, including its adjoined surface parking lots, in order to expand the campus westward.
Other possibilities listed on the Campus Master Planning Blog include: relocating student service functions from the far East side to a place closer to the center, like Taylor and Morgan, renovating the concrete Quad and turning it into a more landscaped area with a water fountain, adding evergreens for the winter and adding a streetscape. On the West Side, however, the renovation is based around expanding the medical center across Roosevelt and adding a Teaching and Learning Center.
During the Q&A session, a few members of the community expressed displeasure with this campus expansion. For students and faculty who live on the South campus, they are most likely familiar with the Sunday festivities at the church on the corner of Roosevelt and Newberry (a block west of Halsted). Their concern was that the area they have been allowed to occupy since before UIC was around would be taken away from them; they stated that their parking lot space was already taken, as promised that it wouldn't be in the past. But Taeyaerts assured them that they will only build on land that UIC currently occupies and will not cross over boundaries.
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