The Red and Black

Issue date: 9/12/07 Section: News

Media Credit: LAUREN GRUNDHOEFER The Memorial Garden by the SLC is one of the green spaces on campus. A green space is an area of vegetation specifically created to be esthetically pleasing and provide a spot to relax. [Click to enlarge]

As Kermit the Frog knows, it's not easy being green. But the Office of University Architects is trying.

As part of its most recent master plan, developed in 2006, the University is attempting to expand the characteristics of North Campus throughout the entire campus.

"One of the primary guiding principles (of the master plan) is to create the optimal student environment," said Kevin Kirsche, a landscape architect for the University. "The North Campus quad and the Arch really are the memory of the place."

The University's most notable environmentally-conscious project, he said, is the D.W. Brooks Mall, which replaced the once congested D.W. Brooks Drive.

The Mall won numerous awards and was featured in presentations at national architecture conferences, he said.

By replacing impervious roadways with trees and improved water filtration systems, Kirsche said South Campus will have better water quality and begin to develop a tree canopy.

Kirsche admits not everyone believes more green space is a good thing. Limited parking in close proximity to buildings is one issue critics raise, he said.

"We believe that pushing more of that parking to the perimeter of campus and allowing people to walk strongly enhances the experience," said Kirsche.

"We're charged with managing storm water. Particularly with the (new Lamar Dodd School of Art), we're managing the water upstream as well as downstream," said Paul Cassilly, director of design and construction.

Cassilly said this is accomplished in a number of ways, including rain gardens, which filter runoff through plants, layers of soil and rocks to purify and slowly release it into nearby streams.

University architects must design "100-year" buildings that are meant to last for about a century. That's why long-term impact is so important, Kirsche said.

"It's in our best interest and the best interest of the state to build a facility that will be durable and timeless," he said.

In energy-efficient buildings, emphasis is placed on lighting design.

Lights in most new buildings, he said, are tied to daylight sensors, so they only turn on if there is not enough daylight to effectively light the room.

Most buildings also are positioned to take advantage of daylight, with more windows on the north and south sides.

New buildings use water-efficient fixtures, and architects look for ways to collect and reuse rain water, he said.

"We do it not just for the environment but because it's life-cycle cost-effective," Cassilly said.

"Yes, we're designing for energy efficiency, but we're also designing for people," Kirsche said.

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