We’ve all seen the blue fences crisscrossing across campus. We’ve all needed to take that extra few minutes to walk around a building or two. We’ve all wished there were a few extra cut-throughs between the bulldozers and jackhammers.
But we knew what we were getting into.
We at The New Paltz Oracle recognize that students might not be overly enthralled by the buzzing of construction vehicles and the inconveniences they create, but we urge the student body to have patience and understand that this process has been in planning for years.
SUNY New Paltz has been in a constant state of construction for the past few years as the campus undergoes a complete overhaul as outlined by the Facilities Master Plan.
Large portions of our campus have been gobbled up by construction crews and as students we’ve become accustomed to those blue fences being erected outside of our dorm windows.
It started with the Atrium being added to the Student Union, a shining example of what our campus will look like when the expansive and decade-spanning construction project is completed.
Now, we are witnessing the metamorphosis of our campus as buildings that were once brutalist and monolithic are slowly being stripped to their bones and built anew.
It may be inconvenient for us now, but SUNY New Paltz is becoming a better place to receive an education before our very eyes.
Students who have walked onto the New Paltz campus for the first time surely have noticed the less-than-appealing mounds of dirt, chain-link fences and inconvenient detours we have to take to get to our classes everyday, but in the end it will be worth it. Trust us.
Let’s face it, SUNY New Paltz was in need of a tune-up. Wooster Science Building, a classic example of the architecture of its time, resembled a crashed spaceship more than it did an academic building. Its recent renovation will not only raise the building up to modern educational standards, but will become a new beacon on campus.
Other places, such as Sojourner Truth Library, were in dire need of repairs as well. The library, when completed, will provide students with up-to-date technology and therefore elevate the level of education the average student is able to receive at this institution.
The Mohonk Walk will soon become not only a beautiful addition to campus, but will provide a main artery for students to populate day in and day out.
Isn’t all of this worth a few extra minutes scheduled into your day to make up for the lost parking spaces? Isn’t a better school worth a few extra steps around a building?
Of course, we empathize with students who feel inconvenienced by the constant construction. Loud banging and various other problems don’t lend themselves to a calm environment to study in. Also, we think having a few extra paths to cut through the bigger projects on campus would go a long way.
In the end, we need to recognize that, while inconvenient now, our campus will benefit from these projects and bolster the campus we call home everyday.