University of Colorado - Boulder
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Contents |
Introduction
A study completed by Time magazine and Princeton Review, The Best Campuses for Year 1997, showed that there is a strong correlation between campus appearance and happy students. According to national surveys, prospective students make up their minds about attending a school within their first 15 minutes, and CU-Boulder students rate campus appearance as one of the university's three most significant assets. Such studies confirm that campus appearance can result in larger numbers of student applicants, higher retention rates, and ultimately greater alumni donations.
University of Colorado Facts
- Was founded in 1876 at Boulder, at the base of the Rocky Mountains
- Includes 786 acres on the Main Campus, East Campus (including the Research Park, Williams Village and the Mountain Research Station
- Includes about 200 classic rural Italian-style buildings and complexes built of Colorado sandstone with red tile roofs.
Colorado Creed
As a member of the Boulder community and the University of Colorado, I agree to:
• Act with honor, integrity and accountability in my interactions with students, faculty, staff and neighbors
• Respect the rights of others and accept their differences
• Contribute to the greater good of this community I will strive to uphold these principles in all aspects of my collegiate experience and beyond.
Positive University of Colorado Themes
- Transportation by bike can be more scenic than by car, and often about as fast given the network of trails and bike routes in Boulder.
- Grade-separated crossings for alternate modes of transportation work where the topography provides opportunities.
- In the busiest of areas, identifying adjoining but separate pedestrian and bike paths has worked.
- City and University cooperation has created most of the improvements cited here.
- Buildings of different styles have been worth preserving, renovated for an adaptive reuse.
- Restoration and adaptive reuse apply to landscaping and site features as well.
- Even in the city, there are natural-areas, many restored from previous development, and wildlife resources. Interpretative signage and good access helps makes these an educational resource.
- Wise use of natural resources has benefited the university (for example the use of ditch water for campus irrigation, and the use of floodplain areas).
- Areas where the city and nature interface have been an attractive location for diverse scientific research activities.
- The past can be a fertile source of wisdom.
Design Goals as identified in 1997
- More Students / More Research
- Extent of Technology / Emphasize On- or Off-Campus Instruction
- Living - Learning Residence Halls / More CU Student Housing
- Housing Cost in Boulder / Trip Distance
- More Transit / More Parking
- Logistical Cohesiveness Important / One or Several Campus Sites
- More Parking / More Open Space
- More Signage / Eclectic or Strategic Landscaping
- Grandview: Existing or New Uses / Preservation or Urban Renewal
- Artwork integrated into the setting significantly enhances the experience.
- View corridors to the mountain backdrop, and view corridors to major buildings, are essential to the campus ambiance.
- Appropriate lighting
CU Boulder and Valley City Design Similarities
The CU Boulder and Valley City campuses have many aspects of their design plans in common. They both deal with the following:
- Aesthetics and functionality of campus edges will be enhanced.
- Campus entrances will be inviting.
- Connections between the Main Campus and other properties will be strengthened.
- Outdoor spaces will be designed to facilitate varied activity.
- Appropriate lighting will help create a welcoming, safe and secure, campus image, and enhance wayfinding (orienting people to destinations).
CU Boulder Landscape Plan
Likes: clearly organized, visually easy to read, insightful diagrams (accessable through links), defined goals
Dislikes: redundant information, no pictures of campus, overwhelming number of headings
