The future location of the new classroom and faculty office building continues to be considered after the Campus Planning Committee received the site assessments and community feedback during its first fall term meeting Tuesday.
The three remaining sites drew balanced feedback from more than 60 attendees at two open houses Sept. 27. The sites remaining are: Collier House, McArthur Court and a portion of the parking lot near Prince Lucien Campbell Hall.
“Many open house attendees commented on how challenging it is to select a site for the new building and how important it was to do a careful analysis,” said Eleni Tsivitzi, planning associate, who is leading the site selection process. “There was also appreciation conveyed to project team members for the methodical nature of the process and the opportunity to share feedback and ask questions.”
Bora Associates, a Portland-based firm providing site analysis, shared pros and cons of each site under consideration. At the planning committee meeting, they stated that the most viable site appears to be the Collier House site, based on the analysis they have conducted and the feedback they have heard so far.
However, no decision has been made yet and the consultants will continue their analysis in the coming weeks to ensure each site is fully vetted.
If the Collier House site is selected as the preferred site, the structure would be relocated. A relocation site selection study is currently underway to identify and assess possible locations. In addition, a careful assessment of how to accommodate existing uses would take place.
Committee members will now have two weeks to consider the analysis before making a recommendation during a meeting Oct. 19. That recommendation will then be forwarded to President Michael H. Schill for a final decision.
“We must determine a preferred site in the next few weeks in order to allow the design and construction of the building to proceed in an efficient and fiscally responsible manner,” added Tsivitzi. “That said, we want to make sure the community has the opportunity to be fully informed and have decided to hold one additional informational open house before the CPC makes a recommendation on a preferred site.”
Analysis to date on the potential relocation sites for the Collier House will also be shared at that event.
The open house will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Oct. 11 in the Erb Memorial Union lobby near the Fishbowl. Feedback or questions about the site selection study can also be sent via email to eleni@uoregon.edu.