When most students return to UNM this fall, they may notice a number of changes across the main, north and south campuses.
As a major successful research University, with a record number of freshmen enrolling this fall, it was high time for UNM to expand and modernize campus facilities for the needs of the 21st century. Thus, a number of major construction projects are changing the face of UNM. However, with a little planning and a lot of patience, the daily impact of these projects on the average student, faculty or staff member should be minimal.
Here are a few of the projects are occurring at UNM this fall:
On the main campus: repaving Redondo Drive, renovations and expansions at the SUB, Ford Utility Center (power plant), La Posada and University Art Museum.
On north campus: projects at Bratton Hall (Law School), Child Care Center and the HSC Plaza.
On south campus, the new city baseball stadium should open in April.
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Additionally, massive campus-wide utility systems upgrades such as chilled water for air conditioning, electrical supply, interior lighting, etc., are occurring.
Currently one major project impact is the complete closure of Las Lomas Road, just north of the Anderson School of Management. A crane has been parked there for the Lomas Chilled Water Plant project. The road should reopen by Aug. 10.
Another major project impact over the next three weeks is the planned closure of Redondo Drive from Monday to Aug. 18, for repaving. This part of the UNM main campus loop road will be closed to through traffic from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, south to Yale Boulevard, near Central Avenue. On-street, curbside parking in the B-permits zone on this portion of Redondo Drive will be prohibited during the repaving project.
It should be noted, however, that local traffic will be allowed to reach the parking lot driveways along the road. But, the road will be completely blocked to all traffic with safety barricades on the southwest curve, near the corner of University and Central.
To avoid the blockade, drive south on Redondo from Martin Luther King to the Engineering Buildings or drive west on Redondo from Yale to reach Marron Hall, Biology/Chemistry/E&PS, CSEL, Logan Hall, Regner Hall, Sara Reynolds Hall, the Communications and Journalism building, Hodgin Hall and Farris Engineering Center.
For those that park curbside on Redondo in zone B, overflow parking is available at the Parking Services office lot, on the northwest corner of University and Central. The UNM loop road-paving project will be completed on Aug. 18, the day before fall classes begin.
On the first day of fall classes, a number of major construction projects will impact the campus landscape.
The utility trenching continues across main campus in a number of locations near Zimmerman, Anderson and the College of Education, as well as Popejoy and Johnson Center as the Main Campus Distribution System will continue excavating sidewalks to lay new chilled water pipes. The main campus work will be completed by January.
New projects this fall include the UNM Visitor Parking Structure and Welcome Center, which will be built over the Popejoy Hall-Johnson Center lot and will feature 397 parking spaces, a ground level visitor center and a second level Internet cafÇ, with patio seating.
The visitor lot will be closed for one year while the structure is built. Work may start around Sept. 1. The smaller bookstore visitor parking lot will remain open while the larger Popejoy-Johnson visitor lot is closed this year for construction. The new parking structure will open in fall 2003.
On north campus the new Frederick M. Hart addition to Bratton Hall opened in June. The renovations to old Bratton Hall should be complete by February. The new Ambulatory Surgery and Imaging Center and the latest expansion of the Child Care Center should open in January.
If you have any questions, please feel free to call at 277-7590, e-mail at waytogo@unm.edu or visit www.unm.edu/waytogo for more information and daily updates. A notice on how to join the weekly e-mail road closure alerts list serve is also available.
by Brian Eagan
Guest Columnist
