UPbeat

News for and about University of Portland faculty and staff.

Jim Ravelli

Construction & Traffic Update

Construction crews have been very busy this summer completing much of the new roadway and plaza work and erecting the steel frame for Dundon-Berchtold Hall, according to Jim Ravelli, University operations. Steel erection and pouring of concrete floors for the building are expected to be complete on August 27, just in time for the start of the Fall 2018 semester, and workers will then move on to the next phase of construction, which will be interior framing.

Much of the roadway and plaza improvements were completed this summer and the new roadway reopened for one-way traffic to Waldschmidt Hall on August 17 with construction fencing moved back to its position prior to the end of the school year. The Kenna entrance is again an “exit only” and the right hand turn to enter from Willamette will no longer be allowed. That one-way road will be in place through the completion of the project in June 2019.

For more information contact Ravelli at ravelli@up.edu.

Campus Traffic Changes Start Monday, May 14

Construction activity will be ramping up on Dundon-Berchtold Hall now that summer is underway, according to Jim Ravelli, university operations. Fortis Construction will need to accelerate the pace of their work in order to accomplish as much as possible during the summer months when students and many faculty are not on campus. In order to accomplish this, there are going to be changes to the traffic flow entering and exiting campus beginning this week and continuing through August 20. Please read the information below carefully and refer to the map located at the Facilities Planning & Construction page at this link.

VEHICLE ACCESS

Beginning Monday, May 14, auto traffic coming onto the campus via the main drive off of Willamette Boulevard will be required to stop and turn right by the Pilot House and proceed to the main lot. Cars will not be able to proceed any further along the main drive past the Pilot House to reach the Waldschmidt parking lot or Kenna Road. Southbound traffic on Willamette will be allowed to turn right to enter onto Kenna Road at the southeast edge of campus in order to park in the bluff or Waldschmidt lots. Traffic departing campus from Kenna Road can only turn right onto Willamette and proceed south.

Northbound traffic on Willamette cannot turn left onto Kenna Road, but must either proceed into the main entrance or must turn around further north and proceed back to the right turn entry into Kenna Road. Kenna Road will be striped to provide two lanes for traffic moving in both directions from Willamette Blvd. to the Waldschmidt parking lot.

All buses visiting campus will be directed to enter via Portsmouth Avenue, which will not be affected by the construction. This includes buses for camps or athletic events.

Fortunately, there will be no additional loss of parking spaces during the summer.

PEDESTRIAN ACCESS

From May 14 through August 6, pedestrian access to the Bookstore and Pilot House will be limited to the east side of the building. Contractors will be removing the recycled rubber pavers from the west side of the Bookstore and replacing the surface. The white oak in the middle of the turnaround on the main drive will not be harmed by construction projects but the other trees will be removed.

During this period, the Bookstore will remain open for business Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Pilot House will close beginning May 11 and will reopen on June 11 from 3 to  7 p.m.  Access to the patio and the sidewalk on the west side of the Bookstore will reopen after August 6.

The sidewalk along the east side of Romanaggi Hall and the Buckley Center will also be closed until August 6. All other pedestrian access remains the same as it has been during the early months of construction.

As always, the main concern is the safety of everyone on the campus, so please stay alert to contractor vehicles and trucks as they come and go, and be aware of these additional impacts the project will make.

After months of looking at the preliminary pre-construction work, you’ll finally be able to see the new Dundon-Berchtold Hall beginning to rise over the summer. The first stage will be the installation of the basement walls. The steel supports, which will be lifted into place by a crane, not pounded into the ground, will be installed in July. By the time the new academic year begins in late August, the superstructure of the new building will be in place.

For more information contact university operations at x7540 or landtise@up.edu.

Dundon-Berchtold Hall Construction Begins

Construction on Dundon-Berchtold Hall will begin on Monday, February 5, according to Jim Ravelli, university operations. This will be the first construction of a new building in the middle of campus since Franz Hall was built in 1995 and, as with any major building project in such a central location, there will be some impacts that can be minimized, but not entirely avoided. Beginning Monday, employees will begin to see an increase in activity on and around the site as contractors begin to mobilize. The main concern is the safety of everyone on campus, so please stay alert to contractor vehicles and trucks as they come and go, and be aware of these additional impacts the project will make:

Expanded fencing: One of the first activities will be the expansion of fencing around the site. Fencing will be expanded outward to include half the main road across from the Pilot House and towards Waldschmidt Hall. This will eliminate the sidewalk that extends from Shipstad to the roadway by Romanaggi Hall. The sidewalk next to Waldschmidt that runs in front of Christie will remain open for pedestrians. There will also be temporary walkways on the Shipstad side of the sequoias from Christie to the main drive.

Parking impact: Unfortunately, there is no way to avoid the loss of several parking spots as the fencing expands into the roadway along the main entrance drive. This will affect all of the parking along the construction side of the main drive from the turnaround by the Pilot House to Waldschmidt. Parking on the side of the drive adjacent to Buckley and Romanaggi will remain available.

Traffic access: Because the fence will extend into the street, the road will be limited to a one-way only lane between the turnaround by the Pilot House and the Waldschmidt parking lot.  Traffic from the Waldschmidt lot area will be required to leave campus via the Kenna Hall exit.  As construction begins, a flagger will be on site to assist drivers who are headed past the Pilot House towards Waldschmidt Hall.

“Thank you for your patience as we start on this major construction,” says Ravelli. “I know it will require some adjustment for everyone, but the end reward of a new academic hall will be worth the temporary impact. Please plan on seeing regular construction updates from me as the project progresses.”

For more information contact Ravelli at 7540 or go to www.up.edu/uo.

Howard Hall Demolition Cam Online Now

There is now a live camera focused on Howard Hall (or what’s left of it) for those who might be interested in seeing progress on the demolition project, according to Jim Ravelli, University operations. The link is here.

Howard Hall’s demolition will make way for construction of the new Dundon-Berchold Hall, scheduled for completion in 2019.

For more information contact University operations at landtise@up.edu.

Shuttle Service Connecting River Campus, Main Parking Lot

ravelli-copyTo order to help address parking concerns in the University’s main lot, a new shuttle service will connect the main campus with the river campus parking lot starting October 3. All commuters are encouraged to take advantage of this expanded parking and the free shuttle.  The shuttle will run continuously from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m., and again from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. During hours that the shuttle is not running, please contact public safety at 7161 and they can provide service.  The shuttle will pick-up and drop-off from the lower lot to the back of the Pilot house, with stops at Fields & Schoenfeldt and the Beauchamp Center along the way.  Stops will be adjusted depending on demand and interest as the new service moves forward.

The lower lot can be accessed via McCosh St., which is the last right turn upon entering campus on Portsmouth.

For more information contact Jim Ravelli, University operations, at 7540 or ravelli@up.edu.

Faculty & Staff Commencement Parking Arrangements

ravelli copyWith the new commencement format, this year’s exercises may put additional strain on the University’s main parking lot, especially with guests coming and going between ceremonies. All administrators, faculty, and staff participating in or attending commencement this year are asked to park their vehicles in the lower parking lot on the river campus, which is accessed via VanHouten Drive or McCosh Street. A map is available at this link.

From 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., parking attendants will be available to direct parking on the lower lot and shuttle services will be available for continuous transport between the lot and the upper campus. The drop off and pick up will be along the side of the Beauchamp recreation center across from Holy Cross Court. Everyone’s cooperation is very much appreciated, since it will help to ease the potential congestion in the main parking lot and ensure all visitors have a great UP experience.

For more information contact Jim Ravelli, University operations, at ravelli@up.edu.

Main Entry Updates

JimR copyJust in time for the start of school, the upgrade to the main campus entrance is now open in both directions and the paving and concrete work is complete, according to Jim Ravelli, university operations. While the major work has been finished, there are still about three weeks remaining to complete all project elements. The remaining work will be centered around completing the landscaping and installing the monuments near the entrance. Additionally, workers will be re-pouring curbs and sidewalks along Willamette Boulevard on either side of the entrance. There may be times during the concrete work that visitors may experience a small delay entering or leaving the main entrance but there will be no closures to the entrance for this work and a flagger will be directing traffic as needed. Please note, in order to facilitate the move-in of our students and not to disrupt orientation activities, all work has been suspended until Tuesday, August 26.

The work schedule includes:

  • Week of August 25th: Complete landscaping planting and irrigation testing in median and next to sidewalks; begin curb and sidewalk work along Willamette (note there may be an occasional delay at the entrance as we complete this portion of the project); begin monument installation.
  • Week of September 2nd: Complete monument installation; install lamp posts; complete raingarden and associated landscaping.
  • Week of September 9th: Complete sidewalk and curb work along Willamette; final cleanup.

For more information contact Ravelli at 7540 or ravelli@up.edu.

Main Entrance Updates

hWork is progressing on the University’s main Willamette Boulevard entrance and exit. Over the past weeks much of the new drainage system has gone into the ground on the Shipstad side of the drive. In addition, a bioswale has been excavated and its connections to the main drive have been completed. Over the next three weeks UP community members will start to see much more visible changes to the drive as workers start their concrete work and installation of sidewalks on the Shipstad side.

Beginning July 28 the traffic lane will move from the soccer field side to the Shipstad side, to allow installation and connection of catch basins and concrete pours for curbs and sidewalks.

Artist’s renderings and a work schedule are available at http://tinyurl.com/mygex3z. For more information contact Jim Ravelli, university operations, at 7540 or ravelli@up.edu.

Main Entry Construction Updates

hDuring the week of June 30, the rebuilding of the University’s main entry and exit will continue, with storm water system installation on the Shipstad side of the drive, according to Jim Ravelli, university operations. Workers will bore for all electrical conduit runs for the lighting installations and irrigation as well. During the week of July 7, base rock will be installed on the Shipstad side of the drive, and lighting conduits will be installed. Also, please note that the sidewalks have been removed so pedestrian access is either on the south side of Shipstad or from Portsmouth near the Chiles center. Workers are accelerating sidewalk installations to get pedestrian access restored as soon as possible. For more information contact Ravelli at 7540 or ravelli@up.edu.

Campus Main Entry Update

hThe main Willamette Boulevard entry will be open to incoming traffic at all times during this summer’s repaving project. The entrance drive is currently a one-way gravel road on the left side of the drive. At the end of the entrance, drivers may turn into the main parking lot or go left to access other campus parking. Those who park in the main lot must exit using the road to Mehling Hall and onto Portsmouth. Those who park along the Buckley or Waldschmidt Hall areas must leave campus using the Kenna Hall exit.

On Tuesday the 24th, workers will switch the entrance to a wider gravel road on the opposite side of the current entrance, which should help make access to campus much easier. Your continued patience is appreciated as we update this important area of campus.

For more information contact Jim Ravelli, university operations, at ravelli@up.edu.