Campus Tour

[78crusader]

Get to campus once each year.  This past weekend was it for me.  Thoughts:

1. President Harre and the Board do not get enough credit for their vision in basically redoing this campus.  The south loop road in particular was very well done.  They took advantage of the sloping terrain to create visual interest.  The retaining pond south of the library is very nice.  Give credit to President Heckler for insisting on the Welcome Center, the design and layout of which is outstanding.  The student bridge adjacent to the building is a bonus.

2. The intersection of Lincolnway and Roosevelt, while not technically part of campus, is beyond bad.  The fact there is a nice Horizon Bank building on one of the corners only accentuates the bleakness of the other three corners as well as the infamous 3D building.  I can only pray that first time visitors to VU do not access our campus via this route.

3. I very much like the Chapel addition.  I was concerned that the architect chose not to use VU orange brick, but the granite color blends nicely, I think, with the similar color of the side windows of the Chapel.  It looks like a parking lot will be going in from the south entrance road all the way across to this addition.  I suppose this is because we are Americans and cannot expect anyone to walk, say, 200 feet to their office. 

4. This is a serious question -- are there any ongoing frats at VU?  If so, they cannot possibly reside in any of the frat houses I saw (I must admit I did not get over to Mound Street since I was having a nice visit and I did not want to spoil it).  There is no frat house I saw that I would set foot in, let alone live there. 

5. A case could be made that the area in between Wehrenberg, the Geography building, the Business School, and the Performing Arts building is the best spot on campus.

6. Only two American flags on display throughout a 320-acre campus.

7. The sorority complex is going to be much larger than I thought.

8. The Chapel lighting is fabulous.

9. There are some goofy statutes around the Chapel/Performing Arts/Union.  Get rid of 'em.  They look creepy, especially at night.

10. The law school, Heritage Hall, and the grounds south of these buildings is very impressive.  Time for VU to make a connection between old campus and new campus by putting a new building in the vacant square-block area bordered by Union, Greenwich, Garfield and (I forget the name of the last one) streets.  The feeling for years now has been that the law school and old campus are separate and distinct from VU.  Time for that to change.  The sorority complex is a start in that direction. 

11. Alumni and Lankenau are living on borrowed time.  They both have maybe 3 to 5 years before they fall into eyesore status.

12. LaPorte Avenue has nothing on it except the nursing building.  It looks out of place sitting there.  Time to build the fieldhouse, put in the soccer fields, and move LeBien.  Easy to say, very expensive to do. 

13. The new track and improvements to Brown Field are a huge improvement.  Landscaping is needed around the crescent grassy area on the south end.  Anyone interested in helping with this -- I have participated in three landscape projects at VU -- please message me.

Paul

[vu72]

Get to campus once each year.  This past weekend was it for me.  Thoughts:

1. President Harre and the Board do not get enough credit for their vision in basically redoing this campus.  The south loop road in particular was very well done.  They took advantage of the sloping terrain to create visual interest.  The retaining pond south of the library is very nice.  Give credit to President Heckler for insisting on the Welcome Center, the design and layout of which is outstanding.  The student bridge adjacent to the building is a bonus.

2. The intersection of Lincolnway and Roosevelt, while not technically part of campus, is beyond bad.  The fact there is a nice Horizon Bank building on one of the corners only accentuates the bleakness of the other three corners as well as the infamous 3D building.  I can only pray that first time visitors to VU do not access our campus via this route.

3. I very much like the Chapel addition.  I was concerned that the architect chose not to use VU orange brick, but the granite color blends nicely, I think, with the similar color of the side windows of the Chapel.  It looks like a parking lot will be going in from the south entrance road all the way across to this addition.  I suppose this is because we are Americans and cannot expect anyone to walk, say, 200 feet to their office. 

4. This is a serious question -- are there any ongoing frats at VU?  If so, they cannot possibly reside in any of the frat houses I saw (I must admit I did not get over to Mound Street since I was having a nice visit and I did not want to spoil it).  There is no frat house I saw that I would set foot in, let alone live there. 

5. A case could be made that the area in between Wehrenberg, the Geography building, the Business School, and the Performing Arts building is the best spot on campus.

6. Only two American flags on display throughout a 320-acre campus.

7. The sorority complex is going to be much larger than I thought.

8. The Chapel lighting is fabulous.

9. There are some goofy statutes around the Chapel/Performing Arts/Union.  Get rid of 'em.  They look creepy, especially at night.

10. The law school, Heritage Hall, and the grounds south of these buildings is very impressive.  Time for VU to make a connection between old campus and new campus by putting a new building in the vacant square-block area bordered by Union, Greenwich, Garfield and (I forget the name of the last one) streets.  The feeling for years now has been that the law school and old campus are separate and distinct from VU.  Time for that to change.  The sorority complex is a start in that direction. 

11. Alumni and Lankenau are living on borrowed time.  They both have maybe 3 to 5 years before they fall into eyesore status.

12. LaPorte Avenue has nothing on it except the nursing building.  It looks out of place sitting there.  Time to build the fieldhouse, put in the soccer fields, and move LeBien.  Easy to say, very expensive to do. 

13. The new track and improvements to Brown Field are a huge improvement.  Landscaping is needed around the crescent grassy area on the south end.  Anyone interested in helping with this -- I have participated in three landscape projects at VU -- please message me.

Paul

Thanks for the review.  I had the chance to walk the entire campus when I was there for the Horizon League tourney.  Mound Street was suppose to be Frat Row.  Unfortunately, The Lamb Chops, TKEs, Phi Delts and Pikes all folded their respective tents.  Some of those have re-constituted their presence (Lamda Chi and Phi Delts I think).  The whole look was, as President Heckler has said, was kinda "Stalinesk" . I couldn't agree more.  Still, probably the two strongest fraternities, Phi Psi and Sig Ep, still reside there.  Other new chapters like SAE have incorporated since my days.  My sense is that Frats are live and well. 

Part of the plan for fraternities is aimed at across the street from the Sorority houses.  At least two sites will be there and then there is the OX house.

As for the statures, did you see "homeless Jesus" and did you have the same feeling?  I think the art folks really like the various statures.  I don't have an opinion either way.

Remember that the campus has always been located on the poorer part of town.  Valpo U is part of a major renovation and it only will continue until the campus blens right into downtown.

Love to hear others opinions...

[a3uge]

The statues need to go. Embarrassing.

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[vu72]

The statues need to go. Embarrassing.

Sent from my XT1095 using Tapatalk

A poll in The Torch among the students showed that 43% liked the exhibit, 15% disliked it, 16% were indifferent and 26% said "What Statues"  !!   

[ValpoFan]

The statues WILL go. It is a temporary exhibit and while I don't know the exact dates, I can assure you that they will go away...eventually 

[Vinny]

Can anyone post a picture of these statues? I haven't been on campus in a few weeks and am curious.

[vu72]

Can anyone post a picture of these statues? I haven't been on campus in a few weeks and am curious.

I think these (there are several) are the ones referenced.

http://www.valpo.edu/news/2014/10/13/valparaiso-university-presents-acclaimed-sculpture-installation-borders-by-steinunn-thorarinsdottir/

[agibson]

Here are a couple more
https://www.facebook.com/valparaiso.university/posts/10153162494353632
https://www.facebook.com/valparaiso.university/photos/a.10153009292083632.1073741832.55541153631/10153009292293632/

All in pairs I think?  Silver and darker.  Standing, kneeling, sitting, etc.

[swiftmutiny]

5. A case could be made that the area in between Wehrenberg, the Geography building, the Business School, and the Performing Arts building is the best spot on campus.

Was always a great spot to play around with a football or Frisbee.

[okinawatyphoon]

I rather like the person statues. Here is a video from creator about the statues on the VU campus. She is a very renowned artist. 
https://youtu.be/WLM8lZdMAO8

[crusader05]

There are currently 9 fraternities of which five are currently housed. Pike just recolonized this past year.  I believe that at this point phis psi, sig ep and maybe sigma chi have plans to build new houses soon (soon being like within 5 years) and establish a greek row down union street with the sorority houses. The fraternities on campus are: Housed: sig ep, phi si, phi sig, sigma pi and phi mu, unhoused: sigma chi, phi delt, lambda chi and Pike. Most of the unhoused fraternities live in the dorm on mound street across from the German House.
As far as the parking for the chapel that is probably going to be used to accommodate any ADA requirements and also I know one complaint about the chapel is the lack of parking for things like weddings where people may need to pull up quickly so this may be to keep them from cluttering up the u turn between the chapel and the union.

I enjoy the statues both artistically and it's nice to see Valpo engaging in bringing more famous artists to campus like most other schools. They're a talking piece and provide a unique experience for students to both enjoy and kinda make fun of. It's a bonding experience. Much like when I was there (and still to this day) we joked about the sidewalk layout. Over the year the statues became a piece of Valpo culture and lifestyle and I think that's a big part of college life.

[classof2014]

The amount of change that is happening at Valpo is astonishing. When I was a freshman in the fall of 2010, I lived in Alumni Hall, which I know is going to be phased out in the near future, as it should. Much of campus is different, or at least I believe. My senior year they tore the hospital down, Huegli Hall was being raised, the welcome center was in Kretzmann, when I went on my first campus tore the talk of the town was the new union going up.

I really wish Valpo held more onto the past, you still have some older buildings but they will be gone soon. Is Niels still there? I know they plan on getting rid of it.

Part of me will be sad to see Alumni Hall go, its where my first memories of college were formed and some of my best as well. Alumni Hall to me represented what college was, it was the drunken smells, the loud noises, sweating it out in August with no A/C, dealing with cold showers. I understand why they need to upgrade.

I just wish that Valpo did more to preserve the past. Other than the Chapel there isn't one building that shows me a glimpse to Valpo past, once the Zig-Zag dorms are gone. As much as Heckler has done great things for the university, I feel he's destroying the past while paving the way for the future.

The history of Valparaiso University is just as important as the future.

[vu72]

The amount of change that is happening at Valpo is astonishing. When I was a freshman in the fall of 2010, I lived in Alumni Hall, which I know is going to be phased out in the near future, as it should. Much of campus is different, or at least I believe. My senior year they tore the hospital down, Huegli Hall was being raised, the welcome center was in Kretzmann, when I went on my first campus tore the talk of the town was the new union going up.

I really wish Valpo held more onto the past, you still have some older buildings but they will be gone soon. Is Niels still there? I know they plan on getting rid of it.

Part of me will be sad to see Alumni Hall go, its where my first memories of college were formed and some of my best as well. Alumni Hall to me represented what college was, it was the drunken smells, the loud noises, sweating it out in August with no A/C, dealing with cold showers. I understand why they need to upgrade.

I just wish that Valpo did more to preserve the past. Other than the Chapel there isn't one building that shows me a glimpse to Valpo past, once the Zig-Zag dorms are gone. As much as Heckler has done great things for the university, I feel he's destroying the past while paving the way for the future.

The history of Valparaiso University is just as important as the future.

I feel your pain!  Just in a different way. When I was a freshman I lived in Werenberg with one phone per floor!.  Still there, just remodeled.  I studied at Moellering Library which was just a few years old.  I regularly went to the Union, also now gone.  I lived in the old Phi Psi house--no, not the current "old" Phi Psi house.  I studying business in DeMotte Hall. Now torn down and replaced with the new (now old) Business school.  I walked from Werenberg down to where the law school is presently located because virtually all classes were held in that part of campus.  The buildings? Old, for sure. Nostalgia?  Plenty.  Built in the 1880's.  Very pretty part of campus with very big trees.  The problem?  The buildings were just old.  Wooden steps, drafty windows, intermittent heat. Classes interrupted by passing trains.  Ya know, stuff like that.  Oh, and the walk in the winter?  Not fun.  Neils was new and Gellerson was there, less then 10 years old as I recall.  Oh, and Alumni?  Lots of great memories about meeting  freshman women there.  That's all that lived there, certainly no guys!!

So now going through places like the new library, the new union, the new Arts and Sciences school, the new Welcome Center, the new Fites Addition to Engineering, the new track, the new...fill in the blanks!!  Valpo will always be Valpo.  In spite of the changes, it still will always seem like home.

[Vale O. Paradise]

I just wish that Valpo did more to preserve the past. Other than the Chapel there isn't one building that shows me a glimpse to Valpo past, once the Zig-Zag dorms are gone. As much as Heckler has done great things for the university, I feel he's destroying the past while paving the way for the future. The history of Valparaiso University is just as important as the future.

I understand and agree with the sentiment, but unfortunately, I think that the majority of the buildings that went up during the Alumni/Lank/Neils stretch of Valpo history are not worth saving. Sure, countless memories are tied to them, but you could put up a shack and college students would find ways to make great memories in it. The buildings from that area aren't holding up well, and they don't have any significant aesthetic or architectural value. I can't think of a building that is or will soon be razed that I wish was preserved (for reasons other than nostalgia).

Contrast those buildings coming down on that side of campus to Heritage Hall--a beautiful, timeless building that VU decided was worth the extra cash to breathe new life into instead of razing and replacing. Wish we had more like that, but we don't, in my opinion.


Let's hope that the buildings currently going up and that will go up in the near future are buildings that are built with a sense of timelessness, buildings that future VU leaders will deem worthy of keeping around in order to create and preserve a sense of physical history that any college should strive for.

[VULB#62]

....When I was a freshman I lived in Wehrenberg with one phone per floor!.  Still there, just remodeled.  I studied at Moellering Library which was just a few years old.  I regularly went to the Union, also now gone.  I lived in the old Phi Psi house--no, not the current "old" Phi Psi house.  I studying business in DeMotte Hall. Now torn down and replaced with the new (now old) Business school.  I walked from Werenberg down to where the law school is presently located because virtually all classes were held in that part of campus.  The buildings? Old, for sure. Nostalgia?  Plenty.  Built in the 1880's.  Very pretty part of campus with very big trees.  The problem?  The buildings were just old.  Wooden steps, drafty windows, intermittent heat. Classes interrupted by passing trains.  Ya know, stuff like that.  Oh, and the walk in the winter?  Not fun.  Neils was new and Gellerson was there, less then 10 years old as I recall.  Oh, and Alumni?  Lots of great memories about meeting  freshman women there.  That's all that lived there, certainly no guys!!

So now going through places like the new library, the new union, the new Arts and Sciences school, the new Welcome Center, the new Fites Addition to Engineering, the new track, the new...fill in the blanks!!  Valpo will always be Valpo.  In spite of the changes, it still will always seem like home.

I second the comment on "the walk."  It was the first time in my life I experienced sub-zero weather (and I was from the northeast).  I don't think they had invented the wind-chill factor yet, but IT WAS COLD and in the 60's there was nothing between Wehrenberg and the chapel/union/libs.  NOTHING.

Comment:  Brandt, and Scheele were already up and were examples of 60s architecture -- that's why they have got to go.  Back then, had decisions been made to follow the Guild Memorial model for at least dorms, the preservation of the past might have been a bit more effective.  I'm glad the new dorm, while modern, still borrows from the Guild Memorial model.

[Vinny]

Thanks for posting the pictures. I agree. The statues are just creepy and disturbing. Hopefully they're gone soon. If I were a prospective student, I'd wonder why they're on campus. Also, I don't know how long they've been up, but I'm a little surprised a student/students has messed with them.

[agibson]

Alumni Hall, which I know is going to be phased out in the near future, as it should.

Are there plans to remove any dorms?  I thought that the sorority housing was the only planned construction, and haven't heard about any plans for demolition.

Is Niels still there? I know they plan on getting rid of it.

Neils is still here, and it's going to be a good while (I'm not sure anyone even has a timetable... it seems to me that ten years would be very optimistic) before it's even replaced as a science building.  The building slated to start construction in September (I'm told the board smiled) is phase _one_ of a three-phase replacement.

And, I know of no plans to demolish Neils, even after the three-stage project is done.  I believe the talk was of studio arts moving in.  And the two larger lecture halls will probably continue to be used for a variety of classes (psychology regularly meets in the large one, for example).

As for the general question of historic buildings.  Aesthetics aside, I don't know if we have buildings that are mechanically/structurally suited towards long-term (e.g. a century or more) use.  How old's Guild-Memorial?  I guess to me that feels like one of the more historic buildings on "new" campus.  How about the cluster of buildings across from the ARC, with pscyhology, social work, etc.  Do any of those have any age?

[78crusader]

Vale O. Paradise hit the nail on the head.  With maybe one exception, all the buildings that have been razed in the last 40 years were not worth saving -- they were not aesthetically pleasing.  Dau Kreinheder?  The old union?  Huegli Hall?  The old Immanuel School?  C'mon!  I can't mince words here -- they were all ugly buildings, pure and simple.  Even the old library was nothing to write home about (at one point the Board considered renovating it into a new union -- thank goodness that idea was scuttled). 

The lone exception was Baldwin Hall, the old science building built in 1900 and razed, I think, around 1995.  It was no longer in use when I was in school (1974-78) but I was inside it a couple times.  It had great windows, huge classrooms, and a huge staircase.  The exterior was a classic design.  I think that building could have been renovated, but I believe there was a fire around 1990 and VU decided to get rid of it.  I have always felt that was a mistake.  It was a nice looking building. 

Paul

[vu72]

A great discussion.  Thanks Paul for getting it started.  I found this site which details many of the old campus sites and buildings.

http://www.valpo.edu/student/saa/assets/docs/walking%20tour%20brochure%20

In looking at it I found some interesting facts.  The oldest building on old campus was Heritage.  Someone earlier in this thread had said that it had been renovated but that isn't the case.  It was originally built in 1875 and was intended to be renovated and preserved.  The process found it to be too far gone and it was demolished.  Fortunately it was carefully rebuilt to look like the original.  Very nice indeed.  The other building down there had character but were just way too costly to save.  By then the move was to new campus in any event. Not sure kids today would embrace the walk during Indiana winters. Baldwin was built in 1900, Heimlich and Kinsey in 1906 and DeMotte in 1915.

As for the current oldest structure, that would be Hilltop gym, built in 1939.  Guild-Memorial was built in 1947.  Mark Heckler has stated that future buildings will have a more classic college look, as reflected in the Beacon Hall construction.

Kroenke, built in 1950 and the Art Psychology building built in 1949, will be ultimately torn down and replaced with the new baseball stadium, per the Master Plan.

[Vale O. Paradise]

Here's a great article about Valpo's campus from the Cresset: http://thecresset.org/2011/Easter/Buggeln_E2011.html

Some interesting tidbits to entice you to read the whole thing:

"As early as 1926 Valparaiso's administration had been considering the construction of a full Gothic campus (Figure 6). The coherence of this vision is impressive. A Gothic chapel would sit on the highest point of land. The rest of the campus would be filled in on a quadrangle model."

"By the later 1960s, it was apparent that the university had charged ahead with building without following Labatut's advice. In a 1965 letter to O. P., he registered his disappointment about recent campus additions, particularly regarding the placement of new buildings. He noted "so much wasted space for so few buildings.... buildings designed as if unsympathetic to each other, or designed by different architects at different times and without consideration for the quality of space between them..."

"At Valparaiso, as was the case with many postwar campuses, the rapid speed of building had left insufficient time for careful planning. Certainly one of the biggest reasons to discard the Gothic campus in favor of a modern one was financial."

"In the last two decades, Valparaiso University has been moving back toward Labatut's vision of a higher density, better landscaped campus. The Valparaiso University Center for the Arts, dedicated in 1995, marked the beginning of a new wave of building, one that is still in process."

[agibson]

Art Psychology building built in 1949, will be ultimately torn down and replaced with the new baseball stadium, per the Master Plan.

Interesting - I should check out the Master Plan sometime.  But, studio art (and maybe also psychology lab space?) moving to Neils could be compatible with this... 10 or 25 years down the road or whenever.

The Walking Tour brochure phrases it a little oddly, "houses the art and psychology departments".  Maybe it's sort of lab/studio space for both departments.  But, plenty of Art, I believe, is in the VUCA.  And I think of Dickmeyer for Psychology.

[crusader05]

The Walking Tour brochure phrases it a little oddly, "houses the art and psychology departments".  Maybe it's sort of lab/studio space for both departments.  But, plenty of Art, I believe, is in the VUCA.  And I think of Dickmeyer for Psychology.

The Art and psychology building has some classroom space that psych uses and also houses the rat lab.  As far as art goes. Anything regarding painting/sculpting/drawing is in that building. I think they were thinking moving the studio space to Neils cause they will already have the large classrooms once the lab material was moved and they wouldn't have to do as much renovation.
[/size]
[/size]

[size=78%]Are there plans to remove any dorms?  I thought that the sorority housing was the only planned construction, and haven't heard about any plans for demolition.[/size]

From what I understand all the remaining dorms will be renovated. Hopefully with the sororities moving into scheele they will start that first and will do it in bits depending on how much room space they need. Once Scheele is renovated hopefully they can take a dorm off line one at a time to renovate

[Vale O. Paradise]

A somewhat related topic:  I just noticed that the Duesenberg Welcome Center is missing from Google Maps. (However, Beacon Hall, which I believe is a newer building, is on it). Does anyone know how to submit a request to add it to Google? I imagine more than a few visitors, including prospective students, use Google Maps to get to Valpo and that the first stop for many of them is the Welcome Center. Not cool if it doesn't exist on it!

[covufan]

Interesting - I should check out the Master Plan sometime.

I'm sure these are in another thread, but thought OK to put here as well:

http://www.valpo.edu/news/2012/09/21/master-plan-enhances-physical-campus-focuses-on-student-experience/

http://www.valpo.edu/masterplan/

[covufan]

Interesting - I should check out the Master Plan sometime.

I'm sure these are in another thread, but thought OK to put here as well:

http://www.valpo.edu/news/2012/09/21/master-plan-enhances-physical-campus-focuses-on-student-experience/

http://www.valpo.edu/masterplan/

and a link to our own thread:

http://www.valpofanzone.com/forum/index.php?topic=320.0