By DAVID DUPONT
BG Independent News
With the Administration Building now gone, the Bowling Green State University Board of Trustees gave the administration approval to design and construct a new entryway.
The university will use $2.2 million to design and construct the West Campus Entrance Gateway.
That gateway will open up the view to the Bowen Thompson Quadrangle, said Sheri Stoll, the university’s vice president for finance and administration, and open up a connecting gateway to the city. “We really want to reknit this together.”
The entrance would be an open air plaza framed by trellises and have a yet to be determined water feature. Also, she said, it would include “nests,” where students could hook up hammocks. There would also be seating options. It would be a place to study and relax.
“A lot of these details are still being defined,” she said at a meeting of the trustees’ Finance and Facilities Committee on Thursday. “We want to restore some of that traditional look.”
The new entryway, President Rodney Rogers told trustees, will be “honoring our history and our connection to the city of Bowling Green.”
The demolition, he said, “marks the final chapter of the Campus Master Plan 1.0.”
Stoll noted that the gateway offers a number of elements that could be naming opportunities for donors.
She said that construction of the entryway will begin as soon as the demolition is finished and is expected to be completed by the start of the fall 2022 semester.
Stoll also noted that 95 percent of the building was concrete block and brick. That material has been reclaimed, crushed, and will be reused.
Board Chair Dave O’Brien said he looked at the site but couldn’t envision the new entryway. “I’m looking forward to seeing the actual gateway.”
While this marks the end of the Campus Master Plan 1.0, the follow-up plan is still about a year away, Stoll said after the meeting. Extensive assessment of campus infrastructure must first be done. “It’s ton of minutia work leading into it.”
That doesn’t mean campus will be a construction-free zone.
BGSU is in the midst of upgrading its campus network technology. The system, which dates back to 1992 ,touches every corner of campus. Stoll told trustees they will see this work for a number of years. It will take at least until 2028, she said.
The issue is that you have to work around the academic schedule to avoid disruptions to the network.
Also, the university has an ongoing project to establish offices for Life Design on the third floor of the Math Science Building. Stoll indicated that was not 100 percent set but all the preliminary work has focused on that space.
The project would open up the circular stairwells to allow in more natural light and create a more appealing entrance.
Design work for the project would cost $494,000. Stoll said she expects to come to the board in May to seek approval of the construction costs.
Also in the works is a new building for the College of Technology, Architecture and Applied Engineering. There is already $16.4 million in state funds for the project. That would cover the cost of a building the same size as the existing structure.
“We would really like to replace the building to way more than it is today,” she said.
That would include areas for robotics, both for logistics and manufacturing, “which means we need a lot of open space.”
The university is interested in working with corporate partners such as Honda, Amazon, and Peloton. Owens Community College would also play a part, she said.
That all would require more funds from private sources and the state, as well as possible federal dollars. “That’s the longest shot.”
When the work would begin “has not been determined because we don’t have everything pulled together,” she said. It could be “front and center” of the new Campus Master Plan.
The trustees also gave the administration approval to sell a 0.35 acre parcel of land in the Research Park. Wood County Educational Service Center is interested in the land for future expansion and additional parking. The parcel has been valued at $8,800. The university, Stoll said, does not need the land.
