Syracuse University officials sent an email on Thursday to select faculty members seeking to address concerns they have raised in an online public petition regarding the proposed University Place promenade.

The email, signed by School of Architecture Dean Michael Speaks and SU Vice President Pete Sala, stresses that the Campus Framework Advisory Group has sought over the past 18 months to gain input and feedback from faculty, staff and students on the promenade.

One of the concerns raised in the petition — which as of 9:20 p.m. on Thursday had been signed by 98 faculty members — is that there has been a lack transparency in the decision-making process for the promenade.

The petition also states that “no broad input was gathered from faculty or staff, and student input was gathered in a hasty and methodologically unsound manner, at the end of the semester when students are distracted by a thousand other demands.”

Open sessions for students to share their input on the promenade and other aspects of the Campus Framework were held on April 21 and 22.

In the email sent to faculty members Thursday, Speaks and Sala write that “town hall meetings, surveys, small group meetings, and news stories have provided many opportunities for each constituency to share feedback and offer input on the future of the Syracuse University campus.” The email links to a timeline of events dating back to October 2014 outlining SU’s outreach efforts to the campus community regarding the Campus Framework.

The email also links to a fact sheet addressing specific concerns raised by the petition.

One concern raised in the petition is the cost of constructing the promenade, “given the many other more important demands on the university’s budget, and that precious resources (some garnered through the Voluntary Separation Incentive Program for staff) are being spent on aesthetics with no discernible academic purpose.”

Funding for the promenade is not specifically addressed in the fact sheet, beyond a line that says “the University’s infrastructure planning is prioritized annually and budget resources are allocated as proposed and approved.”

Another concern raised in the petition is the potential for increased traffic on Waverly Avenue. The promenade would make University Place a pedestrian-friendly walkway and prevent vehicles from driving there, moving the Centro bus stops that are currently on University Place in front of Bird Library and the Schine Student Center to the other side of those buildings on Waverly Avenue.

The fact sheet linked to in the email states that a traffic study commissioned by SU and SRF & Associates found that “the existing transportation network can adequately accommodate the projected traffic volumes.”

The petition also raises the concern that the promenade would lead to further accessibility issues for people in wheelchairs, on crutches and who are “otherwise impaired.”

The fact sheet states that accessibility improvements “have been at the forefront of our conversations and embedded in our planning discussions with Sasaki and our ADA compliance department.” The fact sheet also states that accessibility to all buildings on University Place will be improved after the construction of the promenade and that the promenade construction will include adding accessible ramps near the Hall of Languages.

Two more feedback sessions regarding the Campus Framework will be held Monday and Tuesday from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. in Newhouse III, according to the email.

Published on May 5, 2016 at 9:20 pm

Contact Michael: mdburk01@syr.edu