On Monday, Oct. 7, architecture planning firm SmithGroup held a “town hall” public forum on Vision 2050, the long-range campus development plan to improve the University of Idaho campus. Several ideas to renovate and build on campus were introduced with the intent of receiving community feedback.
Last semester students might have seen a “Map My Campus” survey where they were asked to place stickers on a map of the UI campus that marked what they liked about campus and what they thought could be improved. This was the first phase of the planning process, where students, staff and community members were able to give feedback.
Since then, the results and opinions have been recorded and analyzed. The next phase started on Monday, as SmithGroup and UI’s solutions to the concerns found were presented and discussed.
One of the biggest concerns was crossing Sixth Street, where dorm-living students must cross every day to reach the academic buildings on campus. There is a separation between many first-year, second-year students and the main part of campus, creating a lack of continuity and unity.
Student housing and services were also analyzed, the findings being that the general walkability from housing to academic buildings was working and liked by most who contributed to discussion thus far. More places to sit, study and congregate were the most common complaints.
More housing—the question on campus-living students’ minds as of late—seems to be involved in every plan. Renovating the South Hill Apartments would be first on the list. Athletics seemed to be just as important, allowing for more recreational spaces and parking for games. Though there were plenty of variations to how athletics on campus could be improved, specific details about housing improvements were sparse.
The Vision 2050 team’s main goal seemed to be connectivity: connecting campus to downtown Moscow, connecting students in dorms to the main core of campus and connecting the Vandal community with athletics were among the most important considerations.
None of it was the final answer, Neil Kesler, a senior principal at SmithGroup, made clear. “Many of these ideas you’re never going to see after today,” he said. Brainstorming, crowdsourcing, general discussion and community inclusion were at the forefront of this phase of the planning.
Campus wellness is also at the forefront of the planning process. How can the Vision 2025 team make life on and off campus more sustainable, pleasant and improve it overall, they asked. Counseling and health services, athletics accommodations and opportunities for safer travel around campus are the main points of change in many of the proposed plans.
One of the proposed plans was “Scenario A: Kinetic Energy,” in which more housing would be built and the South Hill apartments would be improved. More parking and recreation by New Greek Row were also suggested alongside opportunities for new athletic and community spaces around the P1FCU Kibbie Dome. Creating a “medical district” was mentioned to make medical services and education more streamlined.
Extending the Hello Walk to be a connection to Downtown and building on an east-west connection throughout campus, is one of the most interesting ideas of this scenario, backing the main idea that “a body in motion must stay in motion.”
Other scenarios, such as “Hybrid Energy” and “Potential Energy,” had similar ideas with differing goals. “Hybrid Energy” seeks to make UI much more of a pedestrian campus and create something of an “athletics village,” whereas “Potential Energy” aims for strengthening connections everywhere via removing parking and making more open spaces.
In the latter plans, the Sixth Street problem was proposed to be fixed by moving Sixth Street back and replacing the stretch with walkable pedestrian architecture. This would direct vehicular traffic through Paradise Creek Street.
There will be more meetings as the phases continue to progress where students, faculty and community members are welcome to voice their opinions on changes they want to see. The planning process will be finalized by June 2025.
Victoria Kingsmore can be reached at [email protected].