THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2010
WWW.KANSAN.COM
CHAIR AFFAIR
VOLUME 123 ISSUE 16
BY MICHAEL HOLTZ mholtz@kansan.com
The approximately $500,000 expansion awaits final approval from the Memorial Corporation
University officials have tentatively agreed to a 139-seat expansion to The Underground designed to alleviate congestion in the overcrowded food court.
Chairman Adam Miklos, a sophomore from Hutchinson, said he expected the board to make a final decision at its next meeting on Dec. 4.
"There's student demand certainly," Miklos said. "We're going to find a way to remedy the situation so it's not as much of a headache walking into The Underground everyday."
The proposed expansion was one of KUnited's central campaign platforms during Student Senate elections last spring—and one of its
"It's a problem and people know it." Smith said in reference to the congestion "I think once we present it to the Senate it's something that's going to take immediate action."
University officials said they'd like to see a contractor signed in
January and construction begin in May. An exact timeline for the proposed expansion remains undetermined.
Building Services Director Wayne Pearse estimated that construction would take three months to complete.
If plans move forward as expected, students can expect to see an expanded Underground by the beginning of next school year.
But what's good for students isn't always good for business.
"I think the sales are not going to change whether we add seats or not." Mucci said. "If we don't really see it as a good business decision, then can we justify it through other funding approaches?"
David Mucci, director of KU Memorial Unions, which manages all food services on campus, said it was difficult to justify the $500,000 expansion as a business investment unless sales increased as a result. He said he was doubtful of that happening.
In looking for other approaches, Mucci and the board turned to Senate. Smith said a $12 student fee for building renovations would help cover a portion of the $500,000 expansion.
That fee is set to expire next year, though Smith said it might be extended at a lower rate. He estimated the extended fee would cost students $2 to $5 per semester.
Approximately 3,500 sale transactions occur each day at The Underground, according to Nona Golledge, director of KU dining services. Nearly half of those transactions occur between 11 a.m and 1:30 p.m. Golledge said those figures were unlikely to change.
"We don't anticipate we'll see a big increase in numbers," she said. "The seating is just going to help the current customer flow."
Golledge and Mucci said what may relieve congestion most at The Underground was a $60,000 expansion of food services next door in Anschutz Library. That expansion will create more seating and a small espresso bar on the library's fourth floor. Construction will be completed over winter break and the expanded food counter will open in January.
"That may be the thing that saves us more than anything," Mucci said.
Despite the popularity of the proposed Underground expansion, KU officials said increasing the number of seats may not be enough to fully relieve congestion, but that it would be a start.
"Could we ever put enough out there?" asked Pearse. "It's hard to say. But between Anschutz and The Underground it's certainly going to be more accommodating."
— Edited by Tim Dwyer
JAYPLAY | INSIDE
Look at the writing on the wall
The Spencer Museum of Art hosts Dan Perjovschi's Drawing art exhibit through Feb. 6 2011.
INDEX
Classifieds...4B
Crossword...4A
Cryptoquips...4A
Opinion...5A
Sports...1B
Sudoku...4A
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© 2010 The University Daily Kansan
CAMPUS
Dredging at Potter Lake to take three more weeks
Ben Pirotte/KANSAN
BY STEPHEN MONTEMAYOR smontemayor@kansan.com
Chavez works on dredging out Potter Lake on KU's campus. The University decided to dredge the sediment from the bottom of the lake, restoring depth lost during the years. The sediment has piled up during the years, because of runoff from surrounding areas that drain into the lake. The project, which was approved last semester and was scheduled to be finished before the beginning of this semester, is now scheduled to be finished by next Friday.
Months shy of its 100th birthday, a campus landmark awaits another resurrection.
Dredging has begun at Potter Lake, slightly behind schedule yet still exceeding the expectations of the lake's advocates.
"For our group this was our highest priority," said Melissa Allen, vice president of the Potter Lake Project. "However, it was not the goal we thought we could accomplish this quickly due to funding."
Funding for the project was approved by Student Senate in April. The Student Senate Finance Committee, the Chancellor's office and KU Endowment gifts fund the $125,000 dredging process. A second $200,000 project funded by the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act replaced the storm sewer line from Jayhawk Boulevard to the lake and installed three new catch basins on the north and south side of the road. Jim Modig, Director of Design and Construction Management for KU, said the changes aim to prevent overflows of sediment-carrying water down to the lake.
The dredging process was to begin in June and conclude by the start of this semester. Modig said a technical glitch in the University's bid documents required a revision and reopening of the bidding process. When the contract was awarded to Cobra Contractors for about $112,000, the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico further delayed the dredging because the company was also providing materials for relief efforts in the gulf.
Modig said dredging began about three weeks ago and will take another two to three weeks. He described the process as using a mix between a rotary tiller and a snow blower. A device grinds material at the bottom of the lake and suspends it into water, which is then sucked up and pumped into large bags.
The bags, between 16 to 20 feet in width and up to 50 feet in length, sit near Memorial Stadium's parking lot. Once in the bag, the water separates
from the sediment and is returned to the lake.
A sediment basin was also built toward the north end of the lake that will help filter materials that do make it down from lavihawk Boulevard.
Modig said the process was projected to take eight weeks but is contingent upon the relative continuity of warm, dry weather that will allow the collected materials to dry.
The lake was last dredged in 1957. Excess sediment and plant life that has accumulated since then is responsible for the death of fish and unwanted sights and smells.
Potter Lake Project President Matt Nahrstedt said the group intends to plant native plants in the basin in October to further help filtration.
Allen, a senior from St. Louis, said
shed love to see the scenic beauty of the lake return. Nahrstedt, a senior from St. Peters, Mo., said the lake's appearance makes it look inaccessible to the community.
"I think it's an extremely visual problem," he said.
When Modig was a student at KU in the late 1960s, he said the lake was so clear that when it was still, one could see a pristine reflection of the Campanile.
Modig said the project aims to keep Potter Lake a University icon.
"That is a cherished feature that not very many campuses have," Modig said.
Once dredging is completed, the
Primary recommendations included:
In addition to the current dredging process, The Potter Lake Project introduced 22 other recommendations for restoring the lake.
Native plantings
- Path meeting the regulations of the Americans with Disabilities Act
Lowest cost options named by the project:
Best management practices
—Trash cans and recycling receptacles
—Gross cam
Grass carp
visible changes to the lake will take awhile longer. Allen said the lake's mossy green surface won't die off until colder weather arrives.
"I think this spring is a good debut for Potter Lake," Allen said.
Edited by David Cawthon
Read the entire Potter Lake report at kansan.com/docum
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