Opinions
Varsity History Page 4
Donovan Prices Page 10
u
September 4, 2007
Visit http://anchorweb.org for articles and archives
22
Sports
Vol. 80 Issue #1
AnchoR
The The
Free Access to Ideas... Full Freedom of Expression
NEW HALL BRINGS NEW LIFE TO RIC By Kellye Martin Anchor Editor
On May 17, 2006 ground was broken for the construction of a new residence hall. The hall was built using a $30 million bond. According to Teresa Brown, Director of Residential Life and Housing, there are no known plans yet for a name for the building, but a name will eventually be assigned. The naming process is not decided on by the Office of Residential Life and Housing. The building, currently referred to as New Residence Hall, has 6 floors and houses 366 students. It has a mixture of suite and apartment styles with four people per suite or apartment. In addition to the 366 new residents living on campus, well over 200 spaces have been added to the overnight parking lot, L, and new spaces have also been added to K, the Student Union loop. The New Residence Hall is considered a “green” building. This means that the building was built using materials that are environmentally friendly, as are all cleaning supplies, according to Brown. Also, there will be recycling centers in the building. The Office of Residential Life and Housing will be relocating to the bottom floor of the new building, and this move is expected to take place at the beginning of the school year. They expect to be moved into their office in time for Homecoming, when tours of the building will be given. Students will be
Continued on Page 3
SUMMER RENOVATIONS YIELD NEW PARKING SOLUTIONS By Nick Lima Anchor Editor
Top: Newly renovated Lot K, Bottom: Newly renovated Lot L.
The start of a new semester at Rhode Island College typically means the beginning of yet another parking nightmare, however several projects that have been completed within the last four months may take at least some pressure off of RIC’s perennial parking chaos. “The security and safety upgrades to the new parking lots are very effective,” said Fred Ghio, deputy director of security and Assistant Chief of Campus Police. “We should see a tremendous improvement, particularly in K-Lot.” Parking Lot K, known as the Student Union Loop, received a massive overhaul over the summer, which began immediately following commencement last May. Working quickly, construction crews installed improved drainage systems, landscaped the area dramatically, expanded the size of the lot, corrected sightlines, and more than doubled the lighting in the area between Horace Mann, the Student Union Plaza, and College Road. “Pedestrian circulation has been improved more then anything,” according to Ed Brady, director of facilities and operations at Physical Plant, in referencing the Loop. “When everything is finished, there will be plenty of lighting, and things will be much more improved from the standpoint of parking availability.” A slight delay in the completion of the project has been seen as a result of construction crews ordering the wrong lighting fix-
ture covers. According to Brady, the correct parts should be in and ready to be installed later this week. Overall, the addition of diagonal parking and elimination of parallel parking in the Loop has seen an increase in parking spaces from 97 to 129. Additionally, the entrance to the lot, along with the truck turnaround points for deliveries between Donovan Dining Center and Horace Mann, have seen significant safety and traffic flow improvements. Elsewhere on campus, students, faculty, and staff may find a new lot located between Whipple Hall and Alger Hall useful. The lot is known as Parking Lot C. Where 18 spaces had once existed across from Alger, the site of the new (and heavily booked) Alger 110 conference room, an 82 car lot now serves the recently renovated building and the nearby Helen Forman Theatre, as well as the adjacent athletic facilities. A widening of the turning radius on Library Road was included in the project. Across College Road to the residence halls, the largest phase of the parking addition took place. There, Parking Lot L (behind the dorms) was fully repaved and expanded, increasing capacity from 476 to 637 vehicles. As Assistant Chief Ghio had assured Student Parliament during a meeting last semester, the area is now “lit up like Fenway Park,” with extensive, modern lighting throughout the lot. When asked whether the
Continued on Page 3