Sunpost

The Incredible Growing University

City Commission Advances on Changes That Will Let UM Expand

“In order for us to raise our rank, we need to move quickly.”

By Bonnie Schindler

The Coral Gables City Commission unanimously passed the first reading of an ordinance that will greatly expand the University of Miami, and subsequently be noted as the single largest project in the city’s history, during a meeting Tuesday.

“This is the biggest decision I have had to make,” Vice Mayor Maria Anderson told the overflow of UM supporters and community activists who filled the commission chamber.

At issue were 22 amendments to the University of Miami Campus Area Development (UMCAD), a set of laws that regulate the university’s growth, according to Eric Riel, Jr., the Coral Gables planning department director. Normally the city requires annual amendments and reports be made by June 1; however, this ordinance was actually a combination of renovations, demolitions and expansions from 2004, 2005 and 2006, Riel stated.

The UMCAD made its first appearance in 1991, according to Commissioner Wayne Withers, who recalled that back then people in neighboring areas thought life would be drastically disrupted.

“[But] I have not seen that,” he said.

The project includes the demolition of the Charles A. Gauthier Hall “Rathskeller,” and the subsequent renovation and expansion of the Norman A. Whitten University Center.

“This is our heart,” Janet Gavarrete, UM’s assistant vice president of campus planning, said.

Similarly, one campus parking lot will be changed completely, as the new Wellness Center will be built directly over the site.

Some older buildings, such as the Whitten Learning Center, will be totally demolished and rebuilt.

Others, such as the university theater, will be expanded. The additional space will provide academic space for faculty and staff.

Still other buildings’ measurements will be altered.

The projects: the Art and Architecture College Academics facility, Art and Architecture Residential College, the student parking garage, and the Museum and University Hall site, which will be shuffled “very gently” and have its square footage modified, according to Gavarrete.

Gavarrete projects a 20- to 25-year construction period for the completion of all 22 projects.

But since the university is located in a city Riel calls “for the most part a residential community,” — the director says 99.5 percent of the homes surrounding the campus are single-family – it may come as no surprise that some neighbors are concerned.

The debate between the university and the area’s residents erred on the side of the locals during the January 2007 Planning and Zoning Board meeting, when the ordinance was recommended denial 7 – 0.

The Planning Department advised UM to redo its outdated traffic study by including a regional look as well as traffic impact research. The final analysis should be completed by the end of December, according to Riel.

The department also recommended further discussions between university representatives and the adjacent neighborhood.

The neighborhood meetings were fairly chaotic, Krizia Giambanco, a junior and student activist at UM, told the SunPost. She said the neighbors seemed most worried about walking out of their front doors and being faced with a skyscraper, or having to bear with constant noise.

Giambanco contends that modern, more technologically advanced structures — despite their height — are boosts to the community as well as the university.

Indeed, the idea of UM molding itself into a world-class university was an ongoing theme at the regularly scheduled commission meeting.

“[Improvements would help to move forward with the] desire and need to raise the academic experience,” said Gavarrete.

Student well-being, access to housing, safety and social support could also use a boost, Gavarrete added, as these amenities are what matters when it comes to college ranking.

“In order for us to raise our rank, we need to move quickly,” she stressed.

Students attending the commission meeting told the SunPost they can hardly wait.

“We love to take advantage of our programming,” said student representative and senior Nitin Aggarwal. “So the students imposed a fee on themselves to build a new [student center] to take further advantage.”

Aggarwal, who is majoring in science, sees the university as living in a time warp.

“Science changes by the second, if not the nanosecond, [yet] the buildings have not changed in 30 years,” he said.

Others want to ensure that those who embark on post-college journeys can come back to a welcoming center.

Gregory Cesarano, president of the board of directors for the Alumni Association at UM, envisions an alumni center complete with service areas and even ballrooms. Further, the Alumni Center — which in order to build will first have to demolish a cluster of buildings including the Dance Studio/Theater Arts building and the Alumni House, and the Marion and Ed Lau Founder’s Club building — would be styled architecturally to mirror the Coral Gables community.

“It will house the soul of the university,” he said.

And while most of these changes will affect those directly involved with UM, an alteration to the internal road brought approval from some Coral Gables residents.
The amendment would demolish existing roadblocks within the campus, thereby creating more efficient circulation and reducing traffic on the surrounding residential streets, Gavarrete said.

“I believe the internal road will be of great benefit to the community,” said Helen Duncan, a Campo Sano Avenue resident.

For Anderson, the ability to find the middle road between UM and its neighbors was an important factor before she could give the green light.

Commissioner Rafael Cabrera made the same assurance.

“I tried to look at all sides,” he said of the massive project placed before the commission.

The second reading, and final approval of the UM expansion plans, comes before the City Commission on March 27.

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