4 million….. What is a school or college? It is a place for learning not a place for political protests. Why would we want to spend so much money on grass, trees, etc when that money should be used to further the education that is supposed to be going on behind that pretty entrance? And this is just the beginning of a 25 million makeover? What a freakin waste. How about maintenance and and upkeep of the buildings or is that a seperate allocation of millions of taxpayer funds?

A school is a school, a college is a college, it is not about pretty buildings and an offical place of political protests.

UAlbany to create lush campus gateway

Grass, trees, benches and fountain will replace acres of cobblestone

ALBANY — The University at Albany soon will offer students and visitors a grassy green welcome that will replace the original cobblestone entry plaza of the nearly 40-year-old uptown campus.

“We’re about to reinvent the front door, figuratively speaking, of the university,” said university Provost Susan Herbst. “The plaza is a starting point. It’s a first impression. We want our front door to reflect our university well.”

The $4 million project is the first to stem from a $25 million appropriation included in the 2006-07 state budget for improvements around the campus, which was designed by architect Edward Durell Stone.

Stone, among America’s most renowned architects of the 1950s and 1960s, provided Albany’s State University of New York campus with a highly distinctive look, and the cobblestones that cover much of the 3-acre plaza were part of that overall design vision.

The uneven walking surface is difficult for many, however, and does not provide the attractive gathering space the university now needs for formal events such as spring graduations or informal enjoyment by students and faculty, university officials said.

Herbst, whose academic expertise is in political science, even suggested the parklike area will be suitable for political demonstrations.

The new design, prepared by Thomas Balsley Associates of New York City, will incorporate some of the cobblestone as part of a fountain on the new rectangular plaza. It will stretch from Collins Circle, which adjoins the main Washington Avenue entrance, to the main concrete campus podium.

Gingko trees, which Balsley architect Dale Schafer said will turn brilliant yellow in autumn, will line the plaza. The site also will feature bench seating, walkways and gardens. Two statues — possibly of UAlbany’s Great Dane mascot or Minerva, the Greek goddess of wisdom who is an official symbol for the university — will flank four gardens at the plaza entrance.

“What we are doing is improving this campus for our students and ensuring that the facilities match the programs,” said Assembly Majority Leader Ronald Canestrari, D-Cohoes, the former chairman of the Assembly Higher Education Committee.

Herbst said construction on the new plaza will begin in June, with completion expected in the fall. Summer work is likely to be noisy, as jackhammers go to work removing the cobblestones, she said.

As a result of the work, the plaza green space — the part covered with grass, trees and other plants — will increase from about 19,000 square feet to 35,000 square feet.

“I think this will bring a new vibrancy and new life to the entry plaza,” said urban studies student Jason Zogg, who spoke at Friday’s event, which was held in University Hall next to the plaza, one of a very few structural additions to the original unified campus design.

Herbst said the new plaza is the first of several planned upgrades, which will include new lighting, a refurbished podium canopy and better signage.

“I think this is a huge turning point for us in taking care of our campus, taking care of ourselves,” Herbst said.