Ideas on table for south campus carry 'friendly neighbour' theme
University envisions green sustainability features, restful 'gathering place' at 240-hectare site
Keith Gerein
The Edmonton Journal
Friday, August 22, 2008
EDMONTON -- Plans for the University of Alberta's south campus are beginning to take shape, with school officials quietly unveiling designs that envision wide green spaces and bike trails alongside a mix of sports venues, academic buildings and housing.
As the U of A's main campus nears capacity, administrators say there is now growing urgency to shift expansion efforts to the mostly undeveloped 240 hectares south of Belgravia Road.
As such, the school has started to approach community leaders in the area with ideas for a development designed to offer a welcoming environment for both students and residents.
"There are opportunities to be a friendly neighbour and to add services we need together with what the community feels they need," said Don Hickey, the university's vice-president of facilities and operations.
"We want to ensure that the layout of campus is inviting so that people are encouraged to walk in."
Hickey said current designs represent the school's "initial thinking" for developing south campus, not a finalized proposal. Precise details about the look and size of the buildings, the location of access roads and the arrangement of amenities still have to be worked out in consultation with the city and nearby communities, he said.
Whatever plan is eventually approved, administrators are insisting on having a campus that adheres to principles of sustainability, Hickey said.
This could mean adopting environmentally friendly features such as geothermal energy or arranging surface runoff so it is naturally treated as it goes through to the groundwater. As well, the inclusion of employee housing on campus would encourage staff to walk or cycle to work, rather than drive.
Hickey said it's also important to note that the current vision calls for ample green space, including wide trails that would converge at a central plaza area.
Here, planners envision a water feature lying between two buildings: The already constructed AgriFood Discovery Place, and a new structure that could turn out to be a student centre.
"It would be a gathering place for students and faculty," Hickey said. "It's an organizing element that kind of takes the place of what a quad might be."
Leading east from the plaza could be a promenade or "main street" that would take people to the South Campus LRT station.
The buildings along this strip could offer a range of services, from coffee shops and pubs to doctor's offices and drycleaners. One idea receiving attention is to have businesses on the ground floor, with academic space or residence rooms above, Hickey said.
"This would be a high-traffic area. For most people getting off the LRT, this would be their front door into campus."
He said the highest density buildings will probably be near the LRT, although it's unknown at this point if there will be any highrise towers. Most buildings on campus are envisioned to be fairly low-rise structures, he said.
On the most northern section of campus, the university is picturing up to three new athletic facilities to accompany Foote Field and the Saville Centre. One of these is expected to be the GO Centre, a $36-million, volunteer-driven project that would have nine basketball courts, eight volleyball courts and a gymnastics area. The Golden Bears and Pandas varsity teams could play their home games here.
The city and university are also considering a twin-arena complex that would host the U of A hockey teams. If this comes to fruition, Clare Drake Arena on main campus would be devoted to more recreational use, including more intramurals.
A new fieldhouse with facilities similar to the Butterdome is another possibility, although funding for this project may be dependent on Edmonton landing the 2015 University Games.
As for the academic programs that could be hosted on site, the Faculty of Agricultural, Life and Environmental Sciences and the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation are expected to relocate to south campus.
Much of the campus land is currently used for agricultural animal research. Some of this would stay on-site, but the herd-type operations involving cows and pigs will likely move over time to the university's new research station north of St. Albert, Hickey said.
"It's not often you get to do a master plan for a new campus, so we need to make sure we come up with a good one," U of A provost Carl Amrhein said. "The more we can make south campus into a 365-days-a-year community, the better off we are."
At 240 hectares, south campus is more than 2.5 times the size of main campus, so it will take a long time to develop, Amrhein said.
The first phase of construction, which could take until 2020 or longer, will probably focus on the northern section of land above 60th Avenue.
A 50-year timetable could apply to the rest of campus, including the property known as West 240, which lies west of 122nd Street. That area is envisioned to eventually have workforce housing and possibly some shared research facilities used by both the school and private corporations.
It's unknown how many students will ultimately be hosted at south campus, although the section north of 60th Avenue is projected to have about 12,000.
This would make it a lower-density development than main campus, which currently holds about 35,000 students.
Some community leaders have seen the south campus designs, and more consultations with focus groups will take place in September. A public open house is being planned for October.
"We are just starting on this process, engaging with the community to find out what they would like to see in this precinct," Hickey said.
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© The Edmonton Journal 2008
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