New 20 Year Master Plan On Line

[UCONNJACK]

New Master Plan
http://today.uconn.edu/blog/2014/10/master-plan-presents-20-year-vision-for-storrs-campus/

 

[junglehusky]

 

[auggie22]

Some observations:

- 6 new buildings under Nextgen and some renovations for $1.5b. Original plan that was outlined implied over a dozen new buildings plus renos, including new facilities for general classroom space. Equipment is now a huge outlay.
- now hedging on commitment to add 5000 add'l undergrads to Storrs enrollment
- laser focus in this document on building facilities for research and graduate programs

Seems like the focus of nextgen switched from undergrad to heavily grad school focused since the original Nextgen announcement. Demographic realities or b1g intentions?

 

[HuskyFan16]

Even if the 15-20 year stuff is pure conjecture... the idea that the administration is thinking about additions to Burton indicates, to me at least, that there is no plan to de-emphasize football.

 

[Fishy]

Even if the 15-20 year stuff is pure conjecture... the idea that the administration is thinking about additions to Burton indicates, to me at least, that there is no plan to emphasize football.

What are you talking about?

 

[Seaa Blue]

It doesn't surprise me that plan floated to the academic community doesn't include athletics. As soon as one of those buildings doesn't get built, but an athletic facility does (if it was on the plan) there would be complaints. And besides, the AAU people don't care what you do with athletics.

“The last push was to become the ‘university of choice’ for undergraduate recruitment and retention,” she says. “We’ve done a great job with that, and the classroom buildings and the residence halls and the Student Union expansion – things that were done with UConn 2000 – were aimed at this goal of excellence in undergraduate education.

“While we want to maintain all of that, we have this additional focus now on doing the same thing with our research and graduate education.”
“The last push was to become the ‘university of choice’ for undergraduate recruitment and retention,” she says. “We’ve done a great job with that, and the classroom buildings and the residence halls and the Student Union expansion – things that were done with UConn 2000 – were aimed at this goal of excellence in undergraduate education.

“While we want to maintain all of that, we have this additional focus now on doing the same thing with our research and graduate education.”

Sounds more than just a little "Big Ten-ish" to me...

 

[DarthGrumpy]

Couple of thoughts/observations looking at the draft master plan

• Very visible location for the hockey arena; but, not near parking and my gut is that the Mansfield locals will not like it
• A lot of current student parking (south lot and the lot behind McMahon) are build-out and 3 more parking garages are added, is that enough for student parking with an increased enrollment
• West Campus and the grad dorms are replaced
• Addition to Burton?
• The Library and Student Union are renovated/added to again?
• Gampel is expanded; but, what happens to the varsity swimming pool?
• Track & Field and Field Hockey are moved on top of a new field built where Sherman currently sits (check out the new Balance field at BU, very similar)
• What about a new rec center in X lot?
• UConn should new fields for Intramural sports, looks at the other B1G schools like Mich Sta, they have a lot of rec fields
• Arjona replaced by a new science building, odd that would be separated from the current cluster of science buildings around MSB extending up to Gample
• Lots of new dorms (so much for my old campus view from Ellsworth)

 

[Dooley]

Excited to see a Gampel expansion. It's funny that one sports venue was designed and built with expansion in mind (but no expansion in sight because of dwindling attendance) and the other venue was designed and built too small thinking that 10K-ish crowds were about the extend of the program's popularity. LOVE to see expanding Gampel is on the radar.

The new Rec Center looks amazing. I want to go back and re-enroll so I can use it!

 

[uconndennis]

Couple of thoughts/observations looking at the draft master plan

• Very visible location for the hockey arena; but, not near parking and my gut is that the Mansfield locals will not like it

Slide 23 shows parking at the new Hockey arena

 

[UConn Dan]

How does MSB still exist? Did they renovate I hope?

 

[HuskyFan16]

What are you talking about?

Oops I meant no plan to de-emphasize football. For some reason I cant find the edit button.

 

[Fishy]

Oops I meant no plan to de-emphasize football. For some reason I cant find the edit button.

Ah, so.

The edit button goes away after 15 minutes or so - edited it for you.

 

[itgoeslike]

Ah, so.

The edit button goes away after 15 minutes or so - edited it for you.

15 minutes may be too ambitious for the average Boneyarder (yes, that would include me). A glassy-eyed stare can last at least 30 minutes.

 

[UConn Dan]

20 minutes would be perfect actually

 

[MASSconn]

To the poster above, it clearly states that the Hockey Arena will have a parking garage. Plus, a Garage at Storrs Center. Exciting stuff.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

To the poster above, it clearly states that the Hockey Arena will have a parking garage. Plus, a Garage at Storrs Center. Exciting stuff.

Good eyes. I did not see the 'P' next to the proposed hockey arena location. Just hope they don't build parking on top of the arena like the old New Haven Coliseum. I still think the town of Mansfield will try to block the arena's location, though. The town has a reputation for blocking UConn projects, such as the proposed football stadium behind the Jungle (pre-rent) to sidewalks between campus and Hunting Lodge and Celeron Apartments.

Look at a slightly different and larger master plan. Did not a few other items.

• Where will field hockey and track & field go when the Sherman field and track is 'moved' on top of a parking garage?

• Glad they are going to make Hosrebarn Hill an 'official' fitness loop, which I am sure will make our student athletes feel better after puking after doing a set of wind sprints up the damn thing

• If I ever make it back to campus again, I will get lost with the disappearance of Gilbert Road (access to the hotel?) and further relocations of Hillside and Alumni roads
• 
  
• That said, not surprised at all that the plan is to create a new road between Hillside/Bolton Rd and S Eagleville Road, which would separate the Hillside Circle neighborhood from campus end its use as a short cut.

• Surprised that there will only be 1 soccer practice field, don't they need 2 for men's and women's soccer, especially if UConn ever upgrades men's lacrosse?

• Can I assume that the Burton Expansion will be for the soccer teams?

• These woodland/green space idea looks good; but, it does appear to isolate 2 of the new garages near the current X lot and in S Lot, which could be a safety concern

• The neighborhood around the Alumni Dorms will not be the same with the loss of West Campus dorms, the old Frat row (took that long?), the old Comms buildings between Alumni and EO Smith (I think the on-campus day care is there, too), and dorms on top of Y Lot (higher than Hilltop?)

• Looks like Softball and Tennis gets addressed under the long-term plan (2035)

• How can one make the lawn in front of Wilbur Cross down to Storrs Rd ADA compliant, its a bloody hill?

• I did not know that UConn owns a lot more land than just the main campus and the Depot - Spring Manor, Moss north, Spring Hill, etc.

And, all of this will be done by 2035, which means both of my own kids will have graduated college (hopefully) by then. Crazy.

 

[FDNY99]

At what point does the state make a deal with the Town of Mansfield and district 19 for E.O Smith? With this plan, down the road I can see UCONN buying all the property from Campus down to 275.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

At what point does the state make a deal with the Town of Mansfield and district 19 for E.O Smith? With this plan, down the road I can see UCONN buying all the property from Campus down to 275.

Unlikely, it would likely cost north of $100 million to buy the land and build a new high school for District 19. Money that UConn would rather spend elsewhere and money that the district does not have. UConn is not the only school to have this issue. Pioneer High School is diagonally across the street from Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.

 

[SubbaBub]

I would buy all the land between, 44, 195, 275, and 32, then petition the state for municipal status. Workout some sort of regional resource sharing with Mansfield, they couldn't handle it otherwise, and go from there.

That's what B1G schools do. Buy land, expand and have an well defined agreement with the surrounding 'burg.

 

[Seaa Blue]

Purdue needed cash way back when and sold land. They then bought it back decades later and took a huge loss. I imagine the taxpayers absorbed a lot of that loss.

 

[Pudge]

Some observations:

- 6 new buildings under Nextgen and some renovations for $1.5b. Original plan that was outlined implied over a dozen new buildings plus renos, including new facilities for general classroom space. Equipment is now a huge outlay.
- now hedging on commitment to add 5000 add'l undergrads to Storrs enrollment
- laser focus in this document on building facilities for research and graduate programs

Seems like the focus of nextgen switched from undergrad to heavily grad school focused since the original Nextgen announcement. Demographic realities or b1g intentions?

Actually ... if you dig a little, the 5000 add may be 6500 per a couple of Public documents and Courant articles.

The Sensitivity is there: Out-of-State would go up to 37-38% from today's 28%. That is on par with peers Nationally. And, more internationals. I can tell you land use is in the crosshairs.

 

[auggie22]

Actually ... if you dig a little, the 5000 add may be 6500 per a couple of Public documents and Courant articles.

The Sensitivity is there: Out-of-State would go up to 37-38% from today's 28%. That is on par with peers Nationally. And, more internationals. I can tell you land use is in the crosshairs.

I think the 6500 figure was total undergrad enrollment increase including Stamford. With up to 5000 at storrs. Since the nextgen plan was announced I have seen articles touting an increase in grad school enrollment, too; so I speculate that tradeoffs were necessary to weigh new buildings with cutting edge equipment. Thus capacity to house and teach undergrads has been managed down some. But who knows...

 

[DarthGrumpy]

I think the 6500 figure was total undergrad enrollment increase including Stamford. With up to 5000 at storrs. Since the nextgen plan was announced I have seen articles touting an increase in grad school enrollment, too; so I speculate that tradeoffs were necessary to weigh new buildings with cutting edge equipment. Thus capacity to house and teach undergrads has been managed down some. But who knows...

Don't discount demographics too, New England's population continues to lag the national average (outside of metro Boston and Fairfield County) and there is a population bulge working its way through high school now followed by noticeable drop. I am sure planners took that into account.

 

[pj]

They need to add faculty if they are to reach AAU status and to pay for the faculty you need more students. To attract research faculty you need graduate students to give them free labor. All the growth goes together.

There is definitely a push to look more like a B1G school -- more Rutgers-ish if you will -- on the academic side.