Campus road under construction
By Kelly Kingen
Summer
Reporter
New construction sites seem to be popping up all
around campus. No matter where you turn sidewalks are missing, roads are
closing and buildings are under going repairs.
The latest steel fence and orange tape went up on
July 14, blocking the north bound traffic on Memorial Mall Drive, in front
of Stewart Center.
John Collier, landscape architect in the facilities
planning office, said the construction on the drive would be completed
in two phases.
The first phase of the project will make the area
more convenient for busses to pick up and drop off students, said Collier.
The road will be widened at the bus stop area and
will become narrower toward the ends of the road, which will create a
bow affect, he said. This slight bow in the road will help to slow the
traffic through this area, Collier said.
During the second phase of construction, the southbound
lane will be converted into a bike lane eliminating the flow of traffic
in this direction, said Collier. The median will also be converted into
a planter, he added.
"I think it will improve the vehicle circulation
once the project is completed, and it is consistent with our plan to reduce
vehicles on campus," said Collier. "It might be inconvenient at times
but there will always be access through the site."
The crew is working in a very tight window to complete
this project. Collier said construction was delayed until after July 10
because of a conference being held in Stewart Center and the project must
be completed before the Engineering Round Table in the fall. The Engineering
Round Table takes up every square inch of the mall, said Collier.
The first phase of construction is expected to be
completed by the time school begins in August, and the second phase should
be completed by Sept. 8, said Collier.
The construction is being funded by the class of
1951 and the class hopes to dedicate the updated mall at the Gala Week
in the spring of 2001. In the summer of 1998, the class of 1951 also contributed
to the sidewalks that were rebuilt in the Memorial Mall.
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