I would rather see things such as clock towers, statues, reflecting pools, etc. It adds to the beauty of the campus. Besides, parking should be a problem in college, its college for christs sake.Originally Posted by dhussdawg
|
|
|
|
|
I would rather see things such as clock towers, statues, reflecting pools, etc. It adds to the beauty of the campus. Besides, parking should be a problem in college, its college for christs sake.
I sure wouldn't call gravel parking lots a sight to behold. Do it right, and a parking garage is a much more asthetically pleasing, as well as safe option. Much easier for the police to patrol at night, easier to control access to, easier to centrally locate on campus...etc.
Notre Dame doesn't need parking garages, they use horse & buggy up in that part of Indiana. (Actually, they do have faculty parking garages). Just for good measure, LSU plans to build a parking garage. See http://appl003.lsu.edu/PubSafety/lsu...imp-051705.jpg.
People who complain about parking at Tech are lazy. When I was a student from 98 to 01 I'd park in Hut or one of the outside lots and walk a maximum of ten minutes. The outside lots aren't bad and sure beat parking at the stadium and taking a bus into campus which a lot of schools have to do.
I'm glad the bridge is almost done but I think its sad that Tech wouldn't spend the money to put it over the road. Anyone who's on campus now knows how much traffic backs up at the Everett Street bridge and thats about to increase exponentially when this pedestrian bridge opens.
You should be an architect -- you have all the right characteristics (I work with lots of them). You like the pretty stuff, so long as it has no practical value.
Just kidding. I hope the reflecting pool and other asthetic improvements happen, too.
No body parks in the gravel at night anyway so the police don't need to patrol it. LSU is building one, great. They also have millions more than we do and 20 thousand more students. At this point money can be better spent on stuff other than a parking garage. I swear to god if we build one, 20 years from now we will be on this board bitching about how ugly the parking garage is and the only reason DR built it was because LSU did.
Yeah, I never really thought parking was that bad, either. Then again, I was about the only person walking to class when it was raining...
They should install a roundabout on Everett St. & Railroad. Once people actually learned how to use it, traffic would flow much more smoothly. (Plus, about a third of the traffic would be afraid of the strange round thing in the road and go an entirely different route.)
Don't get me wrong -- I'd rather spend the money on something else, but I really don't like the gravel lots they keep putting on the perimeter of campus. It would be nice to see something else first when you first see the campus...
Look at Baylor's new parking garage:
I think it qualifies as asthetically pleasing.
TD123, I dont care if we get a parking garage, It is not eminent to have one or anything. You talk about not wasting money because we dont have it to waste, yet you want a reflecting pool? Reflecting pools are very nice and pretty, but would it really be worth the money? I seriously doubt it. That is a luxury item, to say the least and not a necessity. It is something that would be sweet down the road when we have more money, but it would be not a great idea at the moment. With the new added parking, I dont think we need a parking garage. If La Tech continues to grow, it could be an idea before long though.
Wow, that guy is really passionate about parking garages...
Time is your friend. Impulse is your enemy. -John Bogle
I used to write parking tickets when I was a student at Tech 30 years ago and there is no question that there's twice as much parking available now as then. It may not be at the front door of your class but there are literally 100s upon 100s of available slots within a 5 minute walk of any class building.
Tech has bought up property in big chunks in the last five years to address the parking problem. Many of these lots have not been paved because there are future development plans in the works. For example, what we have seen with the Biomed building. That lot was dirt and gravel for years but it didn't make any sense to pave it when it would have to be tore out to build the new building.
There is a long-term strategy regarding parking and traffic at Tech and a great deal of planning by Dr. Jim King and others has gone into it. One of the goals is a pedestrian-friendly campus where students don't have to worry about getting run over. That was the reason was closing the area in front of the student center. I'm excited that to see a lot of hard work go into planning Tech's future.
Dhussdawg:
Keep one thing in mind when it comes to the reflecting pool and some of the improvements discussed for the center of campus. The students voted on and passed a self-assessed fee in the April, 2002 elections. We are already in the process of collecting the money.
If a parking garage were to ever happen it would come from a similar fee that would be collected over a much longer period. Perhaps as long as 30 years. I am not for or against it right now, but I am certain general fund dollars would not go to pay for it.
The following is from the April 11, 2002 edition of The Tech Talk.
By CASSANDRA BROWN
News Editor
A proposed $20 student assessment fee for 20 quarters will provide funds for additional parking, the continuation of the alumni walkway and construction of new residence halls.
If approved by the Louisiana Board of Supervisors on April 26, students will vote on the assessment during the Student Government Association elections, to be held April 29 and 30.
The SGA contracted the architectural firms of STBP Architects and ABW Architects to render drawings of the proposed construction and renovations.
The architects produced a series of illustrations and a long-term master plan that will take advantage of the work on Tolliver Hall, the Ropp Center and Hale Hall to implement several strategic improvements to the campus.
"This is an unparalleled opportunity for this campus to regain its center," Ken Tipton, a representative of STBP Architects, said.
Tipton and other planners met with student focus groups, alumni and various other campus organizations to determine the plan for the university.
Parking was a key consideration in the new campus design. If the funds are available, a new parking lot will be constructed in place of Kidd Residence Hall when it is destroyed this summer.
Also planned is the purchase of additional land for parking lots. A new parking lot is planned in the place of Caruthers Residence Hall, which is tentatively scheduled to be demolished in the fall of 2003. The land would also house new residence halls to replace Kidd and Caruthers. The new residence halls are expected to be set up as efficiency apartments.
The long-term master plan is filled with new ideas and concentrates on a more pedestrian-friendly campus.
One aspect calls for the partial closure of Wisteria Street to all but approved service vehicles.
"It's an exciting time at our university," Jim King, vice president for student affairs, said. "The Wisteria project that has been proposed gives us the chance to produce a more vibrant campus."
Additional plans include a pond with drainage capabilities to help reduce rainwater pools, an arbor to provide shade and a unique landmark that will feature a reflecting pool. The landmark, in theory, will become an important milestone, a building that students will walk through only twice “ upon arriving as a freshman and at commencement.
However, the majority of the plans will only be plausible with the $2 million to $2.5 million that would be raised if the assessment passes.
If the assessment does not pass, when Kidd is destroyed, no new parking lot will be added. In addition, the alumni walkway will probably end.
"If we don't get the money we need, we will have to discontinue the walkway," King said. "As of now, we probably have room for bricks maybe through the 2001 graduating class."
The success of the plans depends on the student vote.
The illustrations will be set up in the Student Center, Main Floor throughout the month. Presentations can be requested by calling the SGA office at 257-4565 or by contacting Dr. Dee Dee Anderson, dean of student development, at 257-3901
Yeh, JIm King is da man. I worked in his office while I was there. Him and Dickie Crawford (my boss) were always hard at work. They both strive to make Tech better.
hello guys,
As a graduate of Louisiana Tech I do believe there is a major need foe some type of parking structure on campus. Since I have graduated and moved to the University of Nevada I have seen parking never be an issue here. We have 3 garages and roughly 8000 surface spots on top of those. As long as the garages fit in with the scheme of campus I do not see an issue.
Jason Martin
Class of '04
So, you're the one who wrote tickets on me at 3 am in the morning as I parked in the blue zone next to Memorial Gym!
Louisiana Tech University
Flagship of the University of Louisiana System
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
