Univ. sees Prospect as only viable site
The administration's insistence on putting the colleges on Prospect Street is blatantly irresponsible. They want the colleges to be 'cost effective' in terms of what? I realize that, despite the huge endowment, the university has limited funds. But surely, with a decision this huge, that will change the nature of campus and the social interactions of the student body so greatly, they could have found the extra money to build the colleges separately. How much would it really be, an extra 15%? This is the biggest change to happen to the university in 50 years and if they are going to do it at all they should do it right. Also, regarading their claim about sites being too small: makes your colleges taller! 6-7 stories isn't a problem. Not everything has to be 3-4 stories like the existing colleges. Really, it would not make anything worse.
The administration is proceeding is just about the worst possible way: arrogantly destroying the nature of campus to save money. These colleges are going to be here for 300 years. Find the money. Do it right or don't do it.
To me, if you're going to spend $600 million on a new venture, having the attitude "Well this sucks, but it's our only option and maybe if we try really hard it won't hurt us too badly" makes no logical sense.
Even the Yale Corporation acknowledges that this isn't ideal. How could any responsible company go ahead with a project that they themselves don't wholeheartedly believe in?
Well, I'm certainly not giving my money to Yale. I'll just give it to a worthier cause.
The undergraduate concern about the location of the new colleges isn't wrong but it surely is overstated. Is it really a 'disaster' that will somehow make Yale 'bland?' Hard to see. The location does have the plus of bringing undergraduate life closer to Science Hill, which should make Science Hill seem livelier and perhaps encourage more science majors. Hard to see retrofitting Becton successfully, as outlined in the report, but the concept is right, to bring stores and other interactive features to that side of Prospect. And perhaps the location of the colleges can also get Yale to look at better transit options (a train from Science Hill to the Med School and on to the new West Campus?).
Seriously!?! Take off your shower shoes, put on some walking boots, and move! The proposed site on Prospect is not "far-away." Certainly, it will cause a shift in campus centrality but it is not Siberia. In fact, it is close to Swing and Payne-Whitney and will probably create greater circulation to TD and Silliman. You want far? Walk to East Rock.
The report considered HGS and the Swing Dorm sites but did not consider, apparently, the Law School site. Build a new grad school building and a new law school at the Prospect Place site and the new colleges could be on the south side of the cemetary. If the grad school and the law school get first rate new buildings (including modern technology courtrooms) the sting of losing old traditions would disappear for those two groups.
By the way, many law schools are profit centers on an operational basis, although I don't know if Yale's is because it is so small. But a new building could allow a larger law school population, too. Such an expansion of the law school would not have to be an operational cost drain on the university.
Maybe this will encourage Yale to work with the city on getting better bicycle lanes from East Rock to downtown and throughout. I heard that Yale wants to completely block access for bicyclists that currently come from East Rock through Science Hill, because of the new building they are putting there. That would force people to ride on Whitney Avenue, which unless it is traffic-calmed, just sucks. Yale really needs to encourage more cycling, not less, because it is a major quality of life issue for graduate students and staff.
To #4: You only now came to the realization that there are causes worthier of your money than Yale?
Actually, maybe it's not so bad. It's not really that far away. I mean, the campus is going to expand gradually over the next 50 to 1000 years anyway, right? Even if the student body stays the same size, surely facilities (i.e. science buildings) will need great expansions. Why are we scrambling to find the last buildable plots of land in the existing center campus when it will all be for naught when the campus expands further in 40 years?
Yale needs a place to grow and science hill needs some more activity on it. It's such a dead zone after dark. With some more residential life up there it could really be a great north end to campus.
600 million dollars to accomodate 400 undergrads? 600 million dollars!!!! And you whine about the distance you'll have to walk? A train? Why not a monorail, or each undergrad gets issued a personal car and driver? This is college people, how many other colleges will give you a ride around the corner or to the hair stylist because you're too lazy to walk there? 600 million that could be used for so many other, much more worthy causes. This is an outrage, and shows Yale's elitist excess at it's worst.
Two important aspects of these new colleges which have not been stated yet:
Will they be 4 year residents like Silliman and TD? If the University can figure out a way to get the freshmen on Old Campus (by doing away with annexes), then I have no problem with the new colleges!
Also, what are Yale's plans for Swing Space? Once all the colleges are redone...wouldn't that make an ideal location for a new real residential college?
I have not seen a genuinely convincing case for building(I read Levin's report about this that was distributed 2/18). Lots of downsides, and little real upsides, if any. #2 and #3 are dead on.
I suspect what is going on is that Levin wants to leave a big tangible legacy, and this is the way to do it. Empire or legacy building is not a good enough reason to (1) mess up the campus (2) give the students living in the new places a lower quality of life (even in newer digs) and (3) create this much distraction.
My daughter is a Yalie now, and she has a few years to go. She won't be there when they are done in 2013, but this will be a HUGE distraction for faculty starting very soon and for the next few years (How much will our department grow? Why not more? Why is the X department geting more new faculty? We are just as good as them if not better. Where are the new faculty going to have offices? etc,etc=a million and one details and politicing that will be a momentous distraction, and that makes the quality of my daughter's experience at Yale much less. So I am very opposed.
Too bad Levin is doing this, as otherwise from what I can tell he is doing an excellent job.
Imprisoned two whole blocks from Silliman and around the corner from Morse/Stiles and Swing. And you want stores and everything else in the area to entertain you. Arrogantly destroying the nature of campus? How about Yale arrogantly destroying New Haven to satisfy a handful of transient students. Yes, you are transients. You want trains to the Med School, light rail to Tweed, and everything right next door. Do you even care how much of New Haven will be changed? Do you even care how many more homeowners will be pushed out? Do you think New Haven residents sit around saying " anything to make the overpriveledged Yalies happy". We should be arguing about the huge cost of this project. At this price, how can we honestly look any residents of New Haven in the face and say we know how you feel. No wonder they consider us whining rich kids.
One could have, I suppose, built a tower in the Silliman courtyard... or commandeered SSS?
“The life of a Yale student can easily get stressful and emotionally draining,” Wonjae Lee ’10 said. “Living next to a cemetery wouldn’t really help the situation.”
I dunno: I would find it peaceful. Indeed, I am more worried FOR the cemetery than BY the cemetery.
As for fear of a brouhaha from second-class grad-skoolers: message to GRD: you ARE second classers (especially if you are, indeed, part of GRD versus, say, SOM, MED, or, well, most any other school). Not being mean, just "keepin' it real."
Arturo #13 said:
"Do you think New Haven residents sit around saying 'anything to make the overpriveledged Yalies happy' ".
No, but they might be saying, "I wonder how many jobs for New Haven will be created by this construction project and how many jobs will be created by an expansion of our already largest employer."
Giving out more scholarships or funding more study abroad programs does nothing for New Haven. Spending money building, which creates jobs for locals on the 2-3 year short term, and employing more people on a long term basis to support a larger student body and associated faculty does improve the economy of the home town. I'll bet the guys in the building trades wish ground would break next week (well, maybe in April when the ground is softer).
@12: Yes, they will be four year colleges, and Swing Space is being given to the Law School after Morse and Stiles are renovated, even though YLS has yet to announce plans to expand its student body; they just want more student housing.
They wouldn't change their minds about whether or not to build the colleges, so they're sure as hell not going to change them about where to build them. Right now the best we can do is to try to make sure the transformation of campus is done as smoothly, and in the best manner possible. 600 million dollars is only a starting point, because hundreds of millions more need to be spent to upgrade and expand classrooms (been to Mason Lab lately?), administrative space, facilities staff offices, power generation, etc. They still haven't said what will be done with the old DUH building, though.
#15: That's an incredibly rude thing to say about grad students. What do you even mean by that? Get a life.
#14: Yale is, if anything, making New Haven a better, safer, more prosperous place. Yale is the only decent economy generator your city has.
Can someone explain why the colleges are not built on the New Haven green? There is absolutely nothing there at the moment, and this is immediately next to Old Campus, so ideal location. I am aware that Yale would need to purchase the property but how expensive can it be?
Sure the location isn't ideal, but the sky is not about to fall. It is an opportunity to finally bridge the gap between Sci Hill and the rest of campus. And the colleges aren't THAT far away. Building the "third building" will be key to bridging the gap, by giving other students not housed in those colleges a reason to venture over there.
I will assume the NH Green comment is sarcasm (rather than ignornace)? Sometimes hard to tell over the internet.
I am very confused by the anger many undergrads are expressing about the location of the new colleges. I'm looking at a Yale map, and the distance between the most eastward and westward colleges will be almost identical to the distance between the new northern colleges and the most southward college.
Sure: this will expand the total area over which there are Yale undergrads. But the distance between the most distant pair of colleges remains very similar.
So what is causing the anger? Here are the explanations I can come up with: 1) Undergrads are so happy with the current set up, they are showing some out of character conservatism and are scared of change. 2) Undergrads are showing some in character liberalism, and exhibiting a knee-jerk reaction against the machinations of "the man." 3) Undergrads are so accustomed to the shape of their current bubble, that they have developed an extreme ingroup/outgroup geography bias that makes any location outside of the current bubble seem much farther away than it really is.
-Mark
The new location is a total disaster. The colleges could have been accommodated in the central campus precinct if Yale had been willing to spend more. Unfortunately, Yale's planners don't understand how undergraduate life at Yale works. Unfortunately, Levin's move will effectively turn Yale 2015 into the equivalent of a Duke, Harvard, Cornell or Stanford -- a bland campus without the 24/7 vibrancy that Yalies currently experience.