Rockhurst University has begun work on a master plan. This past spring, the school retained the services of local architecture and planning firm BNIM, local engineering firm Taliaferro & Browne, Inc., and Washington DC-based Einhorn Yaffee Prescott Architecture to create the plan. The purpose of the master plan is to reinforce the four critical issues identified in the University’s 2007-12 strategic plan: 1) transforming lives consistent with core Jesuit values; 2) enriching and building community; 3) ensuring financial and infrastructure strength and 4) establishing Rockhurst’s identity and increasing public awareness. Additional goals of the master plan include incorporating sustainable design, retaining history of the university while modernizing the campus and reinforcing the campus’s relationship with the surrounding community.
[img_assist|nid=256|title=|desc=|link=none|align=right|width=179|height=47]Meetings were held to gather input from faculty, staff and students during April and May; community input sessions began in August. That work resulted in a series of documents that illustrate issues that will affect the final plan, issues such as topography, classroom usage patterns, and vehicular and pedestrian traffic patterns. During the next phase of the plan, the consulting firms will meet again with faculty, staff, students and the community to report their findings and show preliminary drawings. The plan will be presented to the board of trustees in December.
The master planning issues document are linked to Rockhurst’s website at http://www.rockhurst.edu/audience/commun/relations/masterplan.asp. For further information, contact Matt Heinrich, Associate VP for Facilities, at 816-501-4064.