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CONTACT: Gail Hairston, (859) 257-3302, ext 235
FOR RELEASE
UK Prepares for a New Gateway on Scott Street
LEXINGTON, Ky. (July 31, 2008) − When the Newtown Pike extension is completed and Scott Street evolves into a more heavily traveled thoroughfare, the University of Kentucky will have a new, more convenient gateway to campus.
Proposing the creation of a more attractive, more functional front door for its visitors that will also further community development goals, the university recently announced its intention to sell four buildings and adjacent land on the west edge of campus. The chosen developer will be required to renovate Reynolds Building #1 for a Fine Arts Facility and lease back the property to the university.
The six-acre parcel of property includes university-owned and privately owned land and buildings. Bolivar Street borders the property to the north, Scott Street to the south, South Broadway to the west, and the parking area behind Taylor Education Building to the east. The university is offering for sale about five acres of land with four buildings, Reynolds Buildings #1, #2 and #3 and the IRIS Building. An optional acre behind Taylor Education Building is also available.
According to the RFP, the mixed-use development project might comprise hotel/conference, residential, parking, retail, restaurant and classroom facilities. Developers are encouraged to create inviting public spaces with connectivity to campus.
The University’s development goals are to:
• improve the existing Fine Arts Facility, located in the Reynolds Building #1
• assure appropriate and compatible long-term development adjacent to the campus border
• meet community economic redevelopment and infill goals
• provide amenities that will help attract exceptional students, faculty and staff and serve the needs of the university and local community as well as the many visitors to the campus and surrounding area
• stimulate high quality development to elevate the design and character of the “gateway” to UK following the completion of the Newtown Pike extension.
• engage the community as a stakeholder and be responsive to the adjacent neighborhoods and community.
Constructed in 1917, the Reynolds Warehouse with its tall, flexible floor areas, durable surfaces and large windows, has been home to the majority of faculty and students in the Department of Art for more than 30 years. The Reynolds Warehouse features durable materials, sound construction techniques and a sense of craftsmanship, rendering an enduring sense of quality not often achieved in today's construction environment. Its timber structure and masonry exterior lend a strong sense of character to the building, and a tremendous affinity for the building has been voiced by the students, faculty and alumni.
These positive attitudes exist despite the building's many persistent problems. Improvements are needed in lighting, campus access, building egress, fire safety, ventilation and inadequate environmental control.
Recent developments off campus have changed the public perception of South Broadway and the area occupied by the Reynolds properties. To the west of the rail underpass a large residential complex has been constructed, where a series of warehouse structures once stood. To the west of Bolivar Street, land has been cleared of warehouse and industrial buildings to make way for another residential development. On the same contiguous block as the Reynolds property, warehouses have been renovated as loft apartments. Across Bolivar to the north a new mixed use development is being constructed. These projects have dramatically changed the area around the Reynolds Building and have increased its visibility to the public.
The 2002 Physical Development Plan proposed relocating the College of Law to Scott Street. Acceptance of this recommendation along with the presence of the College of Education makes the Reynolds Building site a viable location for the Department of Art. In 2004, a study undertaken for the College of Education showed improvements and additions to the Taylor Education Building and Dickey Hall that would locate pedestrian access and outdoor functions, including food service, on the west side of Taylor facing the Reynolds property.
Fine arts, law, and education are all programs which involve continuous, intensive use through the day and evening, making this precinct a busy and vibrant place on UK’s future campus.
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