A steaming slice of pizza wasn’t the only thing on students’ minds at lunchtime on Monday. ASUNM hosted a student forum, or town hall, to give students the opportunity to voice their opinions to student leaders in the SUB at noon.
Students stepped up to the microphone for topics ranging from parking costs to energy use.
Student David Bracken said he has seen the South Lot bus drivers drop students off and then go on break during peak transportation hours. He said delays in transportation are unacceptable to students, especially those who have jobs on and off campus.
“It takes forever to get to campus,” Bracken said. “I can’t get on and off campus in enough time.”
Three Master Plan committee members answered questions from the audience, as well as ASUNM senators.
“We’d really like to hear from you so we can take that input and incorporate it into the Master Plan,” said Will Gleason, a planning consultant for the Master Plan, at the town hall.
Mary Kenney, UNM planning officer, said she will meet with City Councilor Isaac Benton to discuss different transportation options for students. She said the Master Plan will put an emphasis on students using alternative transportation such as bikes and buses, which will decrease the need for cars.
“This is not just a UNM challenge. It’s a metro area challenge,” she said.
Kenney said more than 50,000 people travel to the UNM main campus every day, which also affects the speed of transportation.
Students also advocated for making UNM a more environmentally-friendly campus.
Michael Polikoff, University planner, said the Master Plan will use three different methods to make the campus greener.
All future buildings on campus must be LEED Silver certified, he said. LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, rates how green a building is. Silver is the third highest ranking a building can receive, according to the LEED Web site. UNM may one day be able to generate energy from wind, he said.
Students should be able to live, work and play without a car, Polikoff said. He said improved transportation, more students living on campus and better bike pathways are the key to going carless.
Polikoff said the Master Plan designates Redondo Boulevard as a bicycle boulevard.
Student Shane Maier said a shuttle pathway proposed in the plan connects Central Avenue to Lomas Boulevard, which would disturb students walking and biking on main campus.
According to the plan, the shuttle would run through UNM and cut through the walkway between the Duck Pond and Zimmerman Library.
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Gleason said the shuttle that cuts through campus is one of the most controversial aspects of the plan.
“It’s another way to connect north and south campus,” he said. “It would have to be done with the lightest possible touch so it doesn’t interfere with the setting of the Duck Pond and huge pedestrian setting at Yale Mall.”
*The Master Plan can be viewed at Iss.unm.edu/PCD *
