Messages to the Community

Fall 2024: "A Road Map for the Future" article in the Fall 2024 Spider Insider

Dear students, staff, and faculty,

We write today to share some exciting opportunities for you to play a role in the development of the 2025 University of Richmond Campus Plan (URCP). We want to ensure that every member of our community has a chance to provide input and share ideas as we shape the future of our beautiful campus. 

We are more than halfway through the yearlong planning phase, and the 2025 URCP is very much a work in progress. We continue to need your input! The 2025 URCP will serve as the roadmap for the physical development of our campus over the next decade and beyond. Campus plan elements can include campus buildings’ condition and space assessment; transportation and pedestrian navigation; and planning for an increasingly sustainable campus infrastructure. 

Since January, a steering committee of more than 20 campus constituents, including University leadership, students, faculty, and staff, has been working with leading architectural and planning firm Ayers Saint Gross (ASG) to provide expertise in guiding this important planning effort. We’ve held more than 20 listening sessions with campus constituent groups so far, engaging with about 1,000 faculty, staff, and students. 

Three open sessions and one town hall are coming up the week after next. Emerging planning themes that will be covered during the open sessions include student life experience; academic experience; landscape and open space; mobility and accessibility; and sustainability and stewardship. We hope you are able to drop in and offer insights and ask questions during one of the following opportunities: 

Sept. 30
6–8 p.m., Heilman Dining Center lobby

Oct. 1
9:30–11:30 a.m., University Forum
11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m., Intramural Fields

Oct. 2
Town Hall, 9:30–11:30 a.m., Tyler Haynes Commons, Alice Haynes Room

If you are unable to attend any of these opportunities, you may also share ideas and provide input about the 2025 URCP on our website. Our hope is that everyone in our campus community has an opportunity to share their ideas.

We expect to finalize and share the 2025 University of Richmond Campus Plan during the spring semester. Thank you in advance for engaging in this process as we together envision the future of our campus.

Sincerely,

David Hale
Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer 

Joan Saab
Executive Vice President and Provost

Dear students, staff, and faculty, 

I write to update the campus community on the initial stages of the University of Richmond Campus Plan (2025 URCP) process. The 2025 URCP will serve as the roadmap for the future physical development of our campus for the near and long term.    

Ayers Saint Gross (ASG), the architectural and space planning firm that is leading us in this important endeavor, has begun conducting listening sessions with campus constituent groups and will continue to do so over the coming weeks. So far, we have conducted 14 listening sessions composed of approximately 165 faculty, staff, and students, with an additional five listening sessions to be completed prior to spring break. These listening sessions are important as we work to gather perspectives about our campus and its support of our educational mission.    

To broaden participation to all members of the campus community, ASG representatives will be holding open sessions on campus at the following times:

Monday, March 25
5–6:45 p.m.: Heilman Dining Center
7–9 p.m.: Tyler Haynes Commons

Tuesday, March 26
10:15 a.m.–noon: Stern Quad
12:15–1:30 p.m.: University Forum  

On behalf of the URCP Steering Committee, I encourage you to stop by and share your feedback and ideas at one of these open table discussions — everyone is invited to participate! You are also welcome to send in your thoughts and suggestions via the URCP website.

Thank you for engaging in this process as we envision the future of our campus.

Sincerely, 

David Hale

Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

Winter 2024: "Preparing for the Future" article in the Winter 2024 Spider Insider

Dear students, staff, and faculty, 

As 2023 winds down, I am writing today to announce exciting news — the development of the 2025 University of Richmond Campus Plan (URCP). 

Rooted in our university’s educational mission, the 2025 URCP will be guided by our strategic plan and will serve as the roadmap for the future physical development of our campus over the near and long term. The physical environment and infrastructure on our extraordinary campus is critical to advancing our mission and supporting a vibrant community both now and in the future. 

The University has retained a leading architectural and planning firm — Ayers Saint Gross — to provide expertise in guiding this important planning effort. A steering committee of approximately 20 campus constituents, including University leadership, students, faculty, and staff, will work closely with Ayers Saint Gross beginning in January. Throughout the process, there will also be ample opportunities for meaningful engagement with students, faculty, staff, alumni, campus neighbors, and community partners to provide important input and ideas for the 2025 URCP. 

This news is exciting as we envision the future of our campus. The last campus plan, released in 2011, resulted in a variety of important changes and additions to our community, including the construction of the Queally Center for Admission and Career Services and the creation of the Eco-Corridor. The 2011 plan also resulted in the development of the south portion of campus near the River Road entrance and included rerouting a road to provide better campus access, building new student residences, and adding intramural fields. 

We expect the planning phase for the 2025 URCP to be a yearlong effort with recommendations executed over the next two to twenty years.

We look forward to providing updates along the way and sharing information about opportunities for engaging in this important process.

Sincerely,

David Hale

Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer