When West Chester University students started classes on Aug. 25, the newly renovated Academic Quad took many of them by surprise. Over the summer, the university’s Facilities Department radically altered the layout of the great green space in the middle of the academic buildings, and the result is drastically different.
“The project primarily originated from the need to address the deteriorating condition of the myriad of walkways that crisscrossed our center of campus,” Dee Giardina, Executive Director of Facilities Design & Construction, said. “A secondary priority was to eliminate exterior steps around campus in order to allow students with physical disabilities ease of access to these primary areas.”
The crumbling walkways have been removed entirely, as well as benches, sculptures, and several trees and shrubs. In their place, a large circular green space dominates the center of campus, with wide paths diverging around it. The concept has created a “Great Lawn” area, the goal of which is to create a central gathering spot. New, wider walking paths have been installed around the Great Lawn, and new trees and plants will be planted around the Quad.
“‘The Great Lawn’ compares to other great lawns in Academic Quads such as Harvard, Yale, or Trinity College in Ireland,” Tom Clark, Director of Facilities Planning, explained. “An additional phase of work on the Quad is being considered for 2015, which would include more intimate settings for small gatherings and a formal outside classroom.”
“Our primary goal was to enhance the collegiate feel of campus, while providing access to these special areas to all of our academic community,” Giardina added. “In much the same manner as the Ram Statue, the Quad now offers a ‘sense of place,’ which will serve to draw our students, alumni and visitors back to our campus for years to come.”
The new, aesthetically appealing layout has pleased many students, especially since the Great Lawn provides a barrier between those playing sports and passersby, potentially leading to fewer collisions among students.
“A friend of mine really loves the new Quad,” student Theresa Kelly said. “He thinks the new layout is really pretty.”
For many students, however, the Facilities Department’s vision falls flat. The removal of many tall or flowering trees from the Quad has been a particular sore spot for students.
“A groundskeeper told me that they cut down more than 50 trees on campus to make room for the renovations over the summer,” student Camdyn Thompson said. “They’ve since replaced at least 15 of them, but if West Chester is supposed to be a green campus, I find it hard to believe that they had to cut down so many.”
“There is way too much traffic now, and there are no trees left on the grass to provide shade,” student Nadia Thomas agreed.
Some on-campus organizations have been directly affected by this renovation, as well. The Slackline Society is an organization dedicated to the practice of “slacklining, the sport of walking on one dynamic flat nylon webbing, tensioned between two anchors,” according to their Orgsync page. The Slackline Society used the many trees scattered throughout the Academic Quad as anchors to practice their sport.
“The removal of the trees has made it very hard for our club to practice on campus,” Slackline Society president Kurt Van Mol said. “What’s even more painful was that our organization was put on hold for over a year due to the fear that we were damaging trees and harming their growth. Less than one month after we were cleared to use the trees as anchors, they told us that they were going to cut down all of the trees on the Quad.
“It’s hard when a university uses a tree health and environmental sustainability mission statement as leverage in an argument,” Van Mol continued, “yet fails to stand behind that mission statement when they see potential for a project that they would like to see done.”
Others are disappointed with the loss of multiple pathways, which have caused the pathways around the great lawn to be very crowded between classes. Coupled with the $970,708 price tag, many students at West Chester are not impressed by the renovation.
“The Quad used to bring people together. The paths created a nice flow of students, and the different areas of grass allowed for a lot of different activities. The functionality has really decreased overall,” Thomas said. “I don’t think it was improved in any way. In fact, it seems like we even had more grass before. So if I had to choose between the Academic Quad before and after the renovation, I would definitely choose the old version.”
Clare Haggerty is a fourth-year student majoring in English. She can be reached at CH757342@wcupa.edu