RTCP may have differences of opinion with University officials from time to time but there is no denying that the University of Maryland is on the move in a positive way. The University broke ground last week on a state-of-the-art $128-Million Physical Sciences Complex. This project is a doozy. The 158,068 square-foot of space will house 53 labs.

A prominent feature of the building is its planned multi-story elliptical glass cone that opens to the sky and will provide a 2000 square foot open space in the plaza as well as natural lighting for the interior of the structure.

The space around the ellipse on the upper floors is much wider than a normal corridor, and is designed to encourage and stimulate scientific conversation. “We’ve made the hallways serve as extensions of the rooms, where people can meet and congregate. The light and transparency contributes to a sense of interaction,” said project designer Simon Trumble of CUH2A, a global architecture, engineering and planning firm.

The Physical Sciences Complex is a joint effort with research partnerships with National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to house the new Joint Quantum Institute (JQI).

In addition a new Laboratory for Advanced Quantum Science (LAQS) will provide 22,000 square feet of underground lab space designed for quantum research.

One the most impressive labs will be the Laboratory for Advanced Quantum Science, which will feature world-class control of vibration and electromagnetic interference, and precision environmental infrastructure for air filtration, ultra-stable temperature and humidity. The lab will equal or exceed the exacting specifications of the Advanced Measurement Laboratory complex at NIST, widely regarded as the most sophisticated facilities of their kind.

The facility will be located just north of Regents Drive at the corner of Regents and Farm Drive. Another benefit is that this location is outside of the area of concern for any Electromagnetic or vibration interference from the future Purple Line.

UMD issued a new phased East Campus Request for Proposal (RFP) Wednesday and will select a developer for Phase I of the project by the end of July. With $5 million in hand to begin relocating their facilities on East Campus to the former Washington Post plant, UMD appears to be forging ahead with a realistic phased implementation plan that takes into account difficult economic conditions. The proposed full build-out of the site plan remains substantially the same (aerial rendering) as the one developed over the course of the past couple years…. although it is subject to further changes to be worked out between the selected developer, UMD, the City and County.

—> See our “10 East Campus Talking Points” to read what RTCP thinks should be incorporated into the project.

The Journalism School’s $30 million Knight Hall, having originally been announced in 2006, is now complete. According to the school’s press release, a few spaces in the building won’t be quite complete later this semester but we’re happy to see UMD’s planned west mall (to take the place of lot 1) starting to take shape. It’s expected to be the first building on campus to be certified LEED gold for its many environmental features. Truly a word class facility for one of the nation’s top journalism programs.

Two criticisms:

• For some reason UMD decided to maintain a rather sizable parking lot between the new building and the Benjamin Building (education school) directly to the east. This is blatantly contrary to the stated vision of the Campus Master Plan to make such intimate spaces pedestrian areas. It’s a strange juxtaposition when you consider the parking lot is adjacent to a very environmentally friendly courtyard next to night hall that uses recycled rain water.
• Despite UMD’s expansive Campus Bicycle Plan only one rack was installed next to the building. It holds a measly 6 bikes. Either journalism students don’t bike to class or UMD-DOTS is not as fully engaged as they claim to be in the bicycle parking placement process.

In response to Robert McCartney’s Op-Ed yesterday in the Washington Post, I decided to throw together the following as I continue to ruminate over the massive amount of debate surrounding the proposed development (also see savethehillock.com) of 9 acres of the 22 acres “Wooded Hillock” behind the Comcast Center:

As an environmentalist and former land conservationist, I mourn the proposed loss of trees as much as the next person. Also, I’m usually less than inclined to side with the University on most issues related to development in College Park. These two things being said, I continue to see no better alternative than the Wooded Hillock for the relocation of facilities on East Campus. I don’t understand how McCartney can say UMD’s examination of alternative sites for these facilities was an “apparently insufficient study”. Somehow studies always seem to be insufficient if the conclusions they reach aren’t in accordance with your own.

UMD did plenty of research and determined the Wooded Hillock  was the cheapest to prepare for construction  and one of the least visible places close to campus  to put these facilities of all the alternatives. The employees in these facilities will constantly be coming back and forth between the (relocated) facilities and buildings that they work on all over campus. Do we really want to have them constantly deploying from across town by M Square (the Golob Property) or up Metzerott Road thus increasing local traffic?

The Wooded Hillock is an ecologically insignificant isolated forest that lays inside the beltway and is itself bordered by several roads. It has little importance for water quality and next to no habitat value. If the property were privately owned, the State wouldn’t even consider purchasing it for ecological reasons with Program Open Space money. The best argument against the destruction of this forest is its educational value as a second-growth, tornado-damaged ecosystem. Unfortunately for UMD’s opponents on this matter, just a portion of the on-campus forest that exhibits those characteristics will be destroyed. Indeed, the 2001 tornado ripped the forest apart all the way up to the Denton Community. If research groups want to go further afield they could look at much larger tornado-disturbance areas north of campus where the county owns thousands of acres of protected stream valley land along the Paint Branch Trail.

Let’s put the sentimentalism aside and focus on much more significant environmental issues in College Park like ways we can cultivate smart, dense infill development and reduce carbon emissions from transportation by promoting biking, walking, and transit. It’s ironic that activists were fighting these facilities being relocated to the Wooded Hillock when they should have focused their efforts on FP-Argo’s proposal to put a whopping 5,500 parking spaces under and around East campus: a move that would have forever cemented the development as a car-oriented suburban mega-development masquerading as a new urbanist “smart growth” success story. At least one benefit to the delay of  East Campus is that we may never see quite that level of parking as it would rely on unheard of amounts of public money. Activists should set their sites on the University’s 2-year intransigence when it comes to the Purple Line alignment on Campus Drive. Better yet, they could demand a near term closure of Campus Drive to private automobiles as the UM Facilities Master Plan envisions (see RTCP’s proposed resolution).

College Park’s environmental community can achieve much more and should get out of this small-bore moral fight over 9-acres of forest. They would be wise to extract themselves from their standing up for the trees against the big evil University position. There are much bigger fish to fry.

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The Diamondback is reporting that the University Senate may come down on the side of the SGA in the Hillock site dispute.

Last February, the SGA unanimously passed a resolution asking the administration to reconsider alternatives to developing the Hillock. But the senate — composed of nearly 200 students, faculty and staff — has a more direct link to university policy than the SGA, which serves primarily as a student advocacy organization.

At a meeting yesterday, the senate’s Campus Affairs Committee charged five members — three faculty members and two students — with reviewing the planned development. The committee will report its findings to the senate by Oct. 26.

We would like the Senate members to look harder at the alternate locations….

One in particular is the “Golob” property. Currently this 13 acre site houses an abandoned manufacturing building that is a eyesore and safety hazard. There were plans for Student housing at this location but those fell through with the economy. HERE is a google map link.

According to the Relocation of East Campus Facilities document the primary reason for not using this site is because the priority use for the site is for the M-Square research park. In addition it was felt that the distance from campus would adversely impact service levels. We feel this is poppy-cock. We would much rather see an existing developed site that is underutilized and is basically a blight put to good use than lose a wooded site that is currently used for classroom study.

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