University Embarks on Master Planning Process

The University of Hartford has begun the process of developing a Facilities Master Plan, which will serve as a blueprint for the growth and maintenance of the campus over the next 10 years.

The plan will build upon the foundation that was laid by the previous master plan, which was completed in 2000. The 2000 master plan paved the way for a variety of new facilities over the past decade, including the Integrated Science, Engineering and Technology (ISET) complex, new athletics fields, the Renée Samuels Center at the Hartford Art School, Hawk Hall and Alumni Plaza, the Handel Performing Arts Center, and more.

In looking ahead to the needs of the next 10 years, planners are evaluating all of the University’s physical assets, including the 350-acre Bloomfield Avenue campus, which contains 38 buildings totaling 2.15 million square feet, and other properties such as the Asylum Avenue campus and the Handel Performing Arts Center.

The planners also will be looking at possible uses for the roughly 140 acres of undeveloped property that the University owns in the area north of the Sports Center, and they will be examining the impact of the anticipated opening of a new campus entrance on Mark Twain Drive. The new entrance is expected to open in the fall of 2009, coinciding with the opening of a permanent home for the University High School of Science and Engineering on Mark Twain Drive.

“The new Master Plan will be an integral part of the University’s future,” said Vice President for Finance and Administration Arosha Jayawickrema. “It will complement and support the new academic strategic plan and the new capital campaign, creating a coordinated and seamless approach as the University plans for the next 10 years and beyond.”

Four Primary Goals

In developing the new Facilities Master Plan, the University has four main goals, said Executive Director of Facilities Norman Young. They are:

- To optimize the use of space

- To maximize the impact of capital expenditures

- To define opportunities for physical growth

- To promote a culture of sustainability

The University has retained the S/L/A/M Collaborative of Glastonbury, Conn., to develop the plan, working together with a Facilities Master Plan Steering Committee, which is chaired by Regent John Harris (see below for the complete list of committee members).

Preliminary work, including an inventory of space on campus and inspection of existing facilities, began in January and is currently being completed. The S/L/A/M/ Collaborative and the steering committee are now moving into the “concept development” phase, in which they will start considering ideas for the future development of the campus.

In late April, a forum will be held where members of the University community will have an opportunity to provide their input on what should be included in the plan. The planners and the steering committee will finalize the concepts and develop an implementation plan during the summer, with a final report to be issued at the start of the Fall 2009 semester, Young said.

The members of the Facilities Master Plan Steering Committee are:
John Carson, Vice President of University Relations
Pamela Davila ’09 (student)
Chris Dupuis, Senior Project Manager, Facilities
James Fairfield-Sonn, Dean of the Barney School of Business
John Harris (Chair), University Regent
Arosha Jayawickrema, Vice President of Finance and Administration
Robert Killian, University Regent
Lynn Pasquerella, Provost
Lee Peters, Vice President for Student Affairs
Elizabeth Petry, Associate Professor of Architecture, CETA
Don Rizzo, Vice President for Institutional Advancement
T. Clark Saunders, Interim Dean, The Hartt School
Harry Workman, Professor of Chemistry
Norman Young, Executive Director of Facilities