UCSC Press Release: UCSC will hold community workshop on long range plans for Long Marine Laboratory property on June 22

UCSC NAV BAR

June 19, 2000
Contact: Jim Burns (831) 459-2495; jrburns@cats.ucsc.edu
UCSC will hold community workshop on long range plans for Long Marine Laboratory property on June 22
For Immediate Release
SANTA CRUZ, CA--The University of California, Santa Cruz, will hold a public workshop on Thursday, June 22, to discuss progress toward developing a Long Range Master Plan for Long Marine Laboratory and the adjacent 55-acre property purchased last year from Wells Fargo Bank. The meeting will take place in the conference room of the Seymour Center at Long Marine Laboratory from 7 to 9 p.m.
Anyone interested in this topic is urged to attend the workshop and provide input, share information, and ask questions. "We are in a very early stage in the planning process, and this workshop is one of many opportunities there will be for public review as we develop a long-range plan," said Charles Eadie, director of campus and community planning.
A UCSC planning committee, which includes representatives of the city of Santa Cruz, has been working with the city's planning department and the California Coastal Commission since last fall to develop plans for the Long Marine Lab site, including the 55 acres acquired by UCSC in spring of 1999.
In December, the committee adopted a set of planning principles for developing the site as a marine research and education center. These principles were presented to the public at an open house in December and published in a document entitled Planning Principles: Marine Research and Education Center.
The university has now selected a consulting team--EHDD Architecture, a San Francisco firm that developed the original Long Marine Lab Master Plan over 20 years ago and also designed the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and BMS Planning Consultants, also from San Francisco--to prepare a Long Range Master Plan for the site. The consultants and the planning committee have been meeting with interested parties in a series of focus-group workshops over the past several weeks, Eadie said. Environmental groups, agricultural interests, and the Terrace Point Action Network were among the participants in the focus groups.
At the public workshop on Thursday, the consultants and the planning committee will present the input they have received from the focus groups, said Gary Griggs, director of UCSC's Institute of Marine Sciences and co-chair of the planning committee. In addition, the consultants will present some of their ideas for how the site might be used, Griggs said.
"There is not yet a plan for the site, and this workshop is an opportunity for interested people to get involved and provide input into the process of developing the plan," Griggs said.
The Planning Principles document states the university's intention for the property: to create a "world-class" marine research and education center that incorporates Long Marine Laboratory, the lab's Seymour Marine Discovery Center, and the Younger Lagoon Natural Reserve. The document also outlines some broad principles for the site's development and identifies several key issues that will affect planning for the site.
The planning principles include guidelines regarding protection of the coastal zone environment, maximizing public access to the coast, and minimizing potential conflicts with surrounding land uses and natural resources. Other issues that will affect the site's development include site constraints, the need for open space and buffers, and the need for additional studies concerning roads and parking.
With respect to housing, the document says some housing on the property will be "critical to the development of a successful marine research and education center." The university is considering housing options that would support the needs of the marine programs on the site, such as accommodations for graduate students, postdoctorates, faculty, and visiting scholars.
"What we're trying to do is to develop a program that supports the university's needs for marine research and education, and then to get the program to fit on the site in a responsible way," Eadie said.
After the June 22 workshop, the next step will be for the planning committee to refine the university's ideas for the site to the point where the consulting team can begin to prepare site plans, Eadie said. The consultants will develop more than one set of plans, and the alternatives will be reviewed by the planning committee and eventually presented to the community in another workshop.
"Ultimately, we will produce a Long Range Master Plan for the site, which will also serve as a Coastal Long Range Development Plan to be submitted to the Coastal Commission for approval," Eadie said. "At each stage in the process we will be holding workshops like this to report to the community and to get feedback."

#####
Press Release Home | Search Press Releases | Press Release Archive | Services for Journalists

UCSC nav bar

Maintained by:pioweb@cats.ucsc.edu



June 19, 2000 Contact: Jim Burns (831) 459-2495; jrburns@cats.ucsc.edu UCSC will hold community workshop on long range plans for Long Marine Laboratory property on June 22 For Immediate Release SANTA CRUZ, CA--The University of California, Santa Cruz, will hold a public workshop on Thursday, June 22, to discuss progress toward developing a Long Range Master Plan for Long Marine Laboratory and the adjacent 55-acre property purchased last year from Wells Fargo Bank. The meeting will take place in the conference room of the Seymour Center at Long Marine Laboratory from 7 to 9 p.m. Anyone interested in this topic is urged to attend the workshop and provide input, share information, and ask questions. "We are in a very early stage in the planning process, and this workshop is one of many opportunities there will be for public review as we develop a long-range plan," said Charles Eadie, director of campus and community planning. A UCSC planning committee, which includes representatives of the city of Santa Cruz, has been working with the city's planning department and the California Coastal Commission since last fall to develop plans for the Long Marine Lab site, including the 55 acres acquired by UCSC in spring of 1999. In December, the committee adopted a set of planning principles for developing the site as a marine research and education center. These principles were presented to the public at an open house in December and published in a document entitled Planning Principles: Marine Research and Education Center. The university has now selected a consulting team--EHDD Architecture, a San Francisco firm that developed the original Long Marine Lab Master Plan over 20 years ago and also designed the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and BMS Planning Consultants, also from San Francisco--to prepare a Long Range Master Plan for the site. The consultants and the planning committee have been meeting with interested parties in a series of focus-group workshops over the past several weeks, Eadie said. Environmental groups, agricultural interests, and the Terrace Point Action Network were among the participants in the focus groups. At the public workshop on Thursday, the consultants and the planning committee will present the input they have received from the focus groups, said Gary Griggs, director of UCSC's Institute of Marine Sciences and co-chair of the planning committee. In addition, the consultants will present some of their ideas for how the site might be used, Griggs said. "There is not yet a plan for the site, and this workshop is an opportunity for interested people to get involved and provide input into the process of developing the plan," Griggs said. The Planning Principles document states the university's intention for the property: to create a "world-class" marine research and education center that incorporates Long Marine Laboratory, the lab's Seymour Marine Discovery Center, and the Younger Lagoon Natural Reserve. The document also outlines some broad principles for the site's development and identifies several key issues that will affect planning for the site. The planning principles include guidelines regarding protection of the coastal zone environment, maximizing public access to the coast, and minimizing potential conflicts with surrounding land uses and natural resources. Other issues that will affect the site's development include site constraints, the need for open space and buffers, and the need for additional studies concerning roads and parking. With respect to housing, the document says some housing on the property will be "critical to the development of a successful marine research and education center." The university is considering housing options that would support the needs of the marine programs on the site, such as accommodations for graduate students, postdoctorates, faculty, and visiting scholars. "What we're trying to do is to develop a program that supports the university's needs for marine research and education, and then to get the program to fit on the site in a responsible way," Eadie said. After the June 22 workshop, the next step will be for the planning committee to refine the university's ideas for the site to the point where the consulting team can begin to prepare site plans, Eadie said. The consultants will develop more than one set of plans, and the alternatives will be reviewed by the planning committee and eventually presented to the community in another workshop. "Ultimately, we will produce a Long Range Master Plan for the site, which will also serve as a Coastal Long Range Development Plan to be submitted to the Coastal Commission for approval," Eadie said. "At each stage in the process we will be holding workshops like this to report to the community and to get feedback." ##### Press Release Home \| Search Press Releases \| Press Release Archive \| Services for Journalists
	Maintained by:pioweb@cats.ucsc.edu