Open House #1

Main Campus LRDP Open House #1 Consultation Summary

Feedback and Responses

The first set of open houses were held on February 8 & 9, 2006 and focused on gathering input on the draft conceptual Main Campus Long Range Development Plan (LRDP). What follows is a summary of the feedback by stakeholders organized by the common themes that emerged from the input.

An integrated open space system is essential to a vibrant community that encourages safety and community building and creates a campus that is easy to navigate with pathways linking larger open spaces framed by buildings. The open space system includes pathways, sidewalks, quadrangle spaces, courtyards, plazas, entryways, public art, landscape features, playing fields, research fields, furniture, lights and vistas. The following are the feedback themes and responses.

  1. Feedback: Aligning open spaces to make movement through the campus more obvious and fluid

    Response: A straightforward and intuitive network of open areas is the intent of our open spaces system. Open space design should provide a positive experience for our campus community and visitors and draw our community together through varied spaces that support a range of campus activity. Open areas will include clear sight-lines to make it easier for people to navigate the campus. Open spaces help create a sense of belonging which is important to energizing the campus experience. 

  2. Feedback: Future wetlands and storm water catchment areas

    Response: The open space system will support an integrated storm water management system. The natural topography of the campus suggests a storm water management system culminating at our University Avenue gate. Future locations for additional storm water sites, if needed, will be developed in the open spaces as larger development sites are identified and as more detail emerges through the planning process. 

  3. Feedback: Stronger entry points and more distinct meeting places that draw public to heart of campus

    The LRDP will identify more notable entry points around our campus edges, interconnected with strongly identifiable meeting places in the heart of our campus open spaces. Meeting places will increasingly incorporate public art, dynamic landscape features, furniture and buildings that seek to draw visitors into our remarkable campus heart. Recently-installed numbered gateway signs are a step towards helping to distinguish one entry from another. 

A pedestrian-orientated campus is critical in creating a safe and energetic campus that integrates with the neighboring communities. The pedestrian and bicycle pathway system allows for safe movement around the campus perimeter, while encouraging slower movement through the middle of campus. The pedestrian and bicycle pathway system includes both combined and separate pathways for pedestrians and cyclists and encourages walking and the use of public transit, reducing our reliance on motorized vehicles. 

  1. Feedback: Adding more secure bike racks and cyclist routes for quicker travel in busy campus areas

    The LRDP will identify space for a pattern of pathways that link campus entry points with open spaces for cyclists to move quickly around main campus. As more pathways are constructed to support development, there will be increasingly more choice of routes for cyclists. Cyclists will be able to move through campus in a variety of ways with various secure bicycle parking. 

  2. Feedback: Reducing conflict between pedestrians and cyclists on the main campus pathways

    The proposed pedestrian and bicycle pathway system will focus on fast-moving cycle traffic around the outside of main campus and pedestrian traffic closer to the heart of campus. Additionally, we will include dismount zones in larger public gathering spaces. The aim is to have carefully designed surfaces, lighting and signage indicating where the pathway routes starts and stops to remind both pedestrians and cyclists of their responsibilities when they are together on the pathway system.

The university's primary focus is to create active open spaces and effective pathways, which means minimizing the presence of public vehicles on main campus. The proposed vehicle and parking system replaces surface parking lots with parking structures located near the entry points of the campus. The number of roadways into the middle of campus will also be reduced. The eventual replacement of most surface parking lots allows us to create additional open spaces and development sites. We'll create an environment where delivery and public vehicles can safety coexist with pedestrians and cyclists. 

  1. Feedback: Adequate parking on main campus

    At this time, the university is planning for the same number of parking stalls on main campus as it exists today, based on benchmark studies. As future development on main campus gradually takes place, surface parking lots will be replaced with multi-level parking structures.

  2. Feedback: Preventing students, faculty and staff from parking on neighbourhood streets

    Residents of nearby communities can apply to the City of Calgary to request a Residential Parking Permit Zone be created for a particular area. These zones control the number of non-resident vehicles by restricting parking to residents with residential parking permits. The university will support our neighbours who choose to obtain a permit in whatever capacity allowable. 

  3. Feedback: Drop-off locations for individuals with moblity challenges that are easy to identify

    The LRDP is guided by principles that speak to making the campus as accessible as possible to all individuals. Drop-off locations will be designed to be closer to building entries as development takes place and/or funding becomes available. There are areas of campus where vehicles would benefit from being able to get closer to a building entry. 

  4. Feedback: Designated, safe, drop-off/pick-up locations

    Ideally, the main campus will have several well-signed drop-off/pick-up locations easily accessible by vehicles and pedestrians that are clearly marked with signage and maps of the campus. These will primarily be located on access roads near new parking structures. While the most notable of these presently are in the south bus loop and near the Information Communications and Technology (ICT) building on the north side of campus, there is room for improvement and a need for more around campus.

  5. Feedback: Parking structures that do more than just house cars

    Given that we anticipate future parking structures will be placed around the perimeter of campus, it will be important for them to do more than simply house cars. They should be used for a variety of purposes and be thoughtfully designed as they will be at our campus gateways. The parking structures will be an appropriate scale so that pedestrians and cyclists feel safe getting around the main campus. 

The land use plan will connect spaces and support the adjacent activities to create a vibrant community for everyone on campus. The main campus land use system includes consideration for academic, research, administrative, athletic, commercial, mixed and operational support, residential, parking and transit centre uses. Recognizing that academic, research and administrative uses are core to the campus, these areas are concentrated around significant open spaces to influence the campus character. Proposed land uses respond to the pedestrian-focused network of pathway systems that link inside and outside routes across the main campus.

  1. Feedback: Residences close to public transit

    We are considering this in the LRDP by locating proposed residences in different parts of campus, as well as by bringing transit closer to our residences. Our land use plan identifies mixed-use opportunities that could include new student housing combined with academic buildings, with access to transit. The university will also work closely with Calgary Transit to bring existing and future public transit routes and stops closer to our existing and future residences.

  2. Feedback: Integrating the main campus and the University District

    We are working closely with the West Campus Development Trust to ensure that the respective plans support a seamless integration of the University District and main campus.

Our main campus will strive to achieve just the right level of density to support a vibrant community. The balance of open spaces, pathways, access points and a good mix of uses will ensure this is a unique destination in Calgary. Built space as well as carefully considered open space should encourage excellence in academic, research and community building aspirations of the university well into the future.

  1. Feedback: Demolishing buildings to make the campus easier to navigate

    Our buildings house academic activity that is not easily relocated. There would have to be compelling reasons to demolish a building and a sound plan to replace it with something better. We will consider all possibilities as we develop plans for the future. That said, the draft LRDP does contemplate partial removal of some of our buildings in the long term to improve movement around main campus. Any removal would occur as new buildings are being built to replace lost space.

  2. Feedback: Linking university buildings with interior walkways

    Whenever possible, we will link the buildings through interior walkways above or below grade. This way individuals can safety move around the larger campus network of exterior at-grade pathways any time of day and in all seasons.

  3. Feedback: Easier pedestrian and cyclist movement from the centre of main campus to the north side

    We will consider the possibilities for how we could make it easier to move through campus from both an interior and exterior perspective.

The university is working closely with Calgary Transit to bring bus and CTrain routes to the inside edges of our campus. Once here, the university is aware that our campus community would benefit from a shuttle-type service connecting main campus to foothills campus through University District.

  1. Feedback: Development near the University LRT station

    We will ensure that the campus community and visitors arriving by CTrain have a great view of the main campus so that they can orient themselves, take in the vistas and plan their routes across campus. Good planning principles suggest areas near CTrain stations should have a higher density with a variety of uses, which encourages public transit use.

  2. Feedback: Shuttle service linking the LRT station with University District and Foothills Campus

    As the University District develops and our campus expands, we can see needing a smaller-scale shuttle that travels with reliable frequency between key destinations within and between our campuses.

  3. Feedback: Improving transit service to and within the university to reduce traveling by vehicle

    Calgary Transit is a key stakeholder in the development of the LRDP and we will continue to work with them to develop transit hubs at the edges of main campus and possible shuttle services between campuses and University District. By working together we can make it easier for our campus community and visitors to get to the university without a vehicle.

A safe university campus is one where students, staff, faculty and visitors feel comfortable moving about by foot or bicycle at any hour of the day or night. Supported by clear pathways, unobstructed sight lines, consistent lighting and visual connections between interior and exterior public spaces we can achieve our objective.

  1. Feedback: Safe pedestrian routes accross the main campus

    We've identified the safety concerns on primary and secondary routes throughout the main campus. We will ensure that the routes are visible from nearby buildings, increasing safety. The routes will be located and designed to be safe for 24-hour use, connecting to the rest of campus through clearly marked pathways.

  2. Feedback: Minimizing conflict between delivery trucks, pedestrians & cyclists in main campus centre

    Future planning will consider the safe interaction between vehicles and pedestrians and cyclists. Studies underway to see how operating procedures and scheduling can reduce vehicle traffic in this area, while we plan for longer term dedicated delivery/receiving areas away from the busy heart of our campus.

The university is committed to engaging our community and we are preparing our long range development plan for the main campus with input from the campus community, community members and other external stakeholders.

  1. Feedback: Engaging the community in the development of the LRDP

    In addition to the open houses, the university has set up an advisory group and a stakeholder working group to assist with developing an LRDP prior to, and in response to, the public feedback. Stakeholders provide guidance and focused discussion around various plan elements and include representation from the following groups: students, faculty, staff, neighbouring communities, Alberta Health Services, City of Calgary, Innovate Calgary and West Campus Development Trust.