At the beginning of each fall semester first-years are finding their way around campus. This year, however, poses a new challenge, with construction on the Coates esplanade blocking Cardiac Hill and limiting access to upper campus.
On Aug. 16, students received an email from Andrew Wells, vice president of Student Affairs, informing students of the construction on the esplanade and providing an updated map to get around campus. Since this project is in the center of campus, many students are affected by this beginning construction phase.
This project was supposed to begin before the fall semester, but due to office closures and delays during the summer, the project didn’t begin until August. “We broke ground early August, on a really kind of aggressive timeline to get this project going as fast as possible,” Wells said.
While the project could have been delayed, the cost of materials and wages rise from year to year, making construction more costly, Wells noted. At night the esplanade was a potential trip hazard, Wells explained, with uneven paving and a lack of proper lighting.
“These present comfort and safety concerns and universal design concerns,” Wells said. “If people are ever going to feel like it’s a space they can hang out at night, it needs to be comfortable and safe. That’s why I wanted to move quickly on this.”
Students often try to find the fastest route possible to get to their classes, with some taking time before a semester begins to explore Trinity’s building layout. Sydney Cox, a first-year biology major noted that many admitted student events took place without the construction so first-year students had to relearn the campus when classes began.
“All of a sudden, all the paths that I learned are completely different,” Cox said. “The big stuff, though, for me at least, is having to walk a lot further, when it used to just be up a staircase.”
While the finished product won’t come until the spring, Cardiac Hill will open again on Sept. 30, barring other delays and challenges. With the recent updates to the Tiger’s Den, events can make use of the Esplanade as well as the Tiger’s Den.
“You know, we can start thinking about how to partner with students on bringing programs here to the center of campus,” Wells said. “My hope is that as inconvenient as it is for current students, the inconvenience will end over winter break, and they’ll get back and be able to enjoy the new space.”
The esplanade was created in 1983, so this project is an attempt to modernize the space. Julia Williams, sophomore communication major and Robert R. Witt-Carleton R. Winn Hall resident assistant, voiced mixed feelings about the construction.
“It’s so annoying, like you’ve taken our main access point to upper campus for freshmen,” Williams said. “At least have Cardiac Hill going into Coates open before classes start.”
Williams expressed that, while construction can bring positive change, money should also go towards other avenues.
“I know students who are barely scraping to get by, paying out of pocket for their tuition that’s continuing to rise,” Williams said. “We could have the money to directly change the lives of the students that go to your campus. I don’t view Trinity as a business transaction. I view it as a community.”
