Campus Master PlanF R O M S T R A T E G I C P L A N T O C A M P U S V I S I O N

2 0 1 2

A university is de�ned by its people and its campus. e talented women and men of Lehigh University thrive in an environment that promotes creativity,

intellectual curiosity, and free discourse. We are the bene�ciaries of a 150-year-old campus laid out to provide for, in the words of Lehigh founder Asa Packer, the “intel-lectual and moral improvement” of students. Our surroundings encourage and fa-cilitate interaction between students, faculty, sta�, alumni, and visitors. Our historic campus buildings and the shaded paths between them are inspiring places to walk, to contemplate lessons from the past, and to conceive and develop ideas and innovation for the future.

As stewards and caretakers, we are obliged to continue to preserve, nurture and improve this beautiful place for generations to come. Our predecessors have done that by building the latest in laboratory facilities, arts venues, and athletic grounds, as well as by renovating our classic buildings to restore their architectural beauty and make current their capabilities. e constant and continuing evolution of Lehigh’s campus tells a story of the vision, hopes and dreams of the Lehigh community of each decade of our glorious history. As we embarked on and crafted this Campus Master Plan we purposefully built upon the extant and extraordinary foundation that is ours. Our goal is to ensure and secure the best and brightest future for Lehigh students and for Lehigh to lead in fashioning and shaping higher education in the 21st century.

You will see in the following pages the thoughtful work of many who have contributed to strategic thinking and planning, and who have a vision and high aspirations for the coming decades. e Campus Master Plan lays out a set of possibilities for the near, medium and long term, grounded in principles that will shape our ability to address new opportunities we cannot now imagine. We fully expect some elements of this Plan to be achieved in the immediate term and others to continue to evolve over the years to come. A hallmark of a great institution like Lehigh is the ability to change with the needs of society while maintaining core values and vision.

Central to this Plan is our goal to become internationally recognized for research excellence and distinctive student experiences. In this Plan, these synergistic aims can be seen in the emphasis on research spaces and student living and learning environ-ments. Some of these goals involve expansion into the Mountaintop Campus where new approaches to higher education can be realized in dramatically di�erent ways. Another feature of this Plan is the embrace of our neighborhood as an integral part of campus life. As we continue to integrate South Bethlehem and the Lehigh Valley into the fabric of our academic mission and campus experience, we will ensure new levels of vibrancy and mutual bene�t for Lehigh and for our surrounding communities.

In June, Lehigh was the recipient of a gift of 755 acres of property nearby in Upper Saucon Township. is historic gift, the Stabler Campus, provides the University with tremendous new opportunities and bene�ts for the long term. While this Plan focuses on myriad opportunities for the Asa Packer, Mountaintop and Goodman Campuses, the Stabler Campus is also the subject of active planning by, and integra-tion into, the University.

e pages of this Plan have been written to evoke and inspire visions of the unlimited possibilities for Lehigh in the years, decades and centuries ahead. We hope that you will join us in our e�orts to make these dreams come true for the University we all love.

– Dr. Alice P. Gast President of Lehigh University

– Brad Eric Scheler, Esq. Chairman of the Board of Trustees

In 2009, Lehigh University unveiled its Strategic Plan, an aspirational document that called for the transformation of the University through the advancement of its intellectual footprint. The Strategic Plan is organized around four components:

• Addressing Grand Challenges and National Needs in Strategic Areas of Focus

• Investing in Faculty and Sta­: A Strategic Expansion

• Providing a Best-in-Class Experience: Promoting Student Success through Core Competencies and Student Engagement

• Partnering in the Renaissance of the Local Community

The 2012 Campus Master Plan is inspired by, and founded on, the vision described in the Strategic Plan. The Campus Master Plan describes the University’s physical footprint as a manifestation of its expanding intellectual footprint. It supports the key goals of the Strategic Plan by proposing ways in which the facilities and grounds of the campus can accommodate the needs of an expanding faculty and the increasingly interdisciplinary work occurring in both teaching and research. The Campus Master Plan recommendations also aim to enhance the student experience, in both formal and informal learning environments. Finally, the Plan recognizes the University’s role as a key partner in the revitalization of South Bethlehem, proposing strategies that provide mutual benefits for both campus and community in the context of the ongoing transformation of the Lehigh Valley region.

Building from the Strategic Plan

advancing o u r intellectualfootprint

STRATEGIC PLAN for Lehigh University

2009

The Campus Master Plan provides a comprehensive framework for University decisions about capital investments, development initiatives, and campus improvements. This framework establishes core principles and concepts while remaining flexible to accommodate changing academic needs and eco-nomic conditions over the life of the Campus Mas-ter Plan. While the plan is intended to represent an implementation period of approximately ten years, it is tied to the development of key strategic initia-tives and therefore may be realized over a shorter or longer period based on evolving priorities.

The Plan is structured around the four key GOALS supporting the Strategic Plan. To demonstrate how these goals can be translated into physical planning concepts, the Plan proposes WIDER STRATEGIES and CATALYSTS that align with each goal. Wider strategies establish an overall rationale and pattern for development in support of a goal, and catalysts are illustrations of how the goal might be achieved through a project that leverages development to generate wider benefits for Lehigh’s three campuses and for South Bethlehem.

Each catalyst relates to a goal in the Campus Master Plan and illustrates a physical manifesta-tion of the concept. In some cases, the location and program of the catalysts are known, and in other

Creating a Frameworkcases they are not. The Campus Master Plan also provides an EXEMPLAR project for each catalyst. The exemplars illustrate how goals can be achieved on campus by creating the physical spaces needed for the pursuit of innovation, collaboration, com-munity interaction, and student life. The Campus Master Plan identifies five Catalysts, paired with five exemplars, as shown in the map to the right.

The Strategies and Catalysts form the heart of the Campus Master Plan and support key strategic initiatives in academics, research, and student life. Development cannot occur, however, without improvements to the infrastructure systems and campus environments that support growth. While not directly serving academic needs, these critical CONNECTIONS enable development by meet-ing increasing demands for services, parking, and transportation. A coordinated approach to parking and transportation will reduce ine�ciencies and al-low the University to fully utilize its resources while improving connections and increasing access across all three campuses and into South Bethlehem. At the same time, improved circulation pathways and enhanced green spaces will support the tradition of an intimate, walkable residential campus fostering informal interaction and close collaboration.

Creating a Framework

FUTUREGOLF COURSE

SAUCON VILLAGE

LEHIGH RIVER

INTERSTATE 78

COLLEGE DRIVE

GOODMAN DRIVE

CR

EEK RO

AD

DUH DRIVE

MOUNTAIN DRIVE SOUTH

FRIEDENSVILLE ROAD

WILLIAM

STREET

DALY AVENUE

BROADWAY

WYAN

DO

TTE STREET

NEW

STREET

WYAN

DO

TTE STREET

THIRD STREET

FOURTH STREET

BRO

DH

EAD AVEN

UE

MOUNTAIN DRIVE NORTH

MOUNTAINDRIV

ENO

RTH

MOUNTAIN DRIVE NORTH

P1

P2

P3

P1

C1

C2

C3

C4

C5

CN1

CN2

CN2

CN3

CN3

CN4

DALY AVENUE

DALY AVENUE

DALY AVENUE

DALY AVENUE

DALY AVENUE

DALY AVENUE

DALY AVENUE

DALY AVENUE

Campus Master Plan Framework

Catalysts

Place-based Strategies for South Bethlehem

Existing Housing Fabric Revitalization Area

Mixed-Use Development Area

Neighborhood Improvement District Area

Connections

Major Pedestrian Paths

Packer Express Shuttle

Campus Connector Shuttle

Goodman Campus Proposed Roadways

Potential Park-and-Ride Lots

Lehigh University Property

Public Recreation

C

P

CN

Goal: Facilitating Interdisciplinary Research and Teaching Interdisciplinary Academics Catalyst

New Horizons Catalyst

Goal: Inspiring Learning and Collaboration Outside the Classroom Campus Crossroads Catalyst

Goal: Participating in the Renaissance of South Bethlehem Revitalizing the Existing Housing Fabric

Mixed-use Development

Participation in the Neighborhood Improvement District (NID)

South Bethlehem Catalyst

C1

C2

C3

C4

P1

P3

P2

Goal: Expanding the Student Living and Learning Environment

Living and Learning Catalyst

Connections

Pedestrian Experience and Car-Free Zone

Transportation: Shuttles

Transportation: Parking

Landscape

C5

CN1

CN2

CN3

CN4

A pilot project for the car-free zone could be implemented as part of the planned

renovation of Williams Hall, a near-term building project for the University. Williams Drive and a portion of Sayre Drive could be

improved through pedestrian-oriented paths and thoughtful landscapes.

Sayre Walk in the car-free zone

C1

C2

C3

C4

C5

N0’ 200’ 400’ 800’ 1/4 Mile

Williams Drive in the car-free zone

Legend

C1

C2

C3

C4

C5

Potential New Buildings

Proposed Renovations

Existing Campus Buildings

Existing Structured Parking

Major Pedestrian Paths

Proposed Car-Free Zone Boundary

Potential Residence Hall Sites

Interdisciplinary Academics Catalyst Exemplar: Chandler-Ullmann Hall Location Unknown, Program EvolvingNew Horizons Catalyst Exemplar: Mountaintop Campus Location Known, Program KnownCampus Crossroads Catalyst Exemplar: University Center Location Known, Program KnownSouth Bethlehem Catalyst Exemplar: Service Building Location Known, Program EvolvingLiving and Learning Catalyst Exemplar: Residence Hall Location Unknown, Program Known

C5

C5

C5C5

Campus Master Plan GoalsGoal: Facilitating Interdisciplinary Research and Teaching

Goal: Inspiring Learning and Collaboration Outside the Classroom

Goal: Participating in the Renaissance of South Bethlehem

Goal: Expanding the Student Living and Learning Environment

Interdisciplinary Academics Catalyst (shown above)

The Interdisciplinary Academics Catalyst demonstrates how renovations to historically important and centrally located buildings in the academic core of the Asa Packer Campus can create an academic neighborhood hub for interdisciplinary activity. Chandler-Ullmann Hall serves as the exemplar for the catalyst, showing how adaptive reuse and the creation of academically-focused indoor and outdoor gathering spaces can create a neighborhood from disparate facilities in a key part of the historic campus.

• Preserve Lehigh’s exceptional architectural character and park-like setting as the three campuses evolve.

• Make optimal use of existing resources and strategic use of new development.

• Create spaces to foster campus community and interdisciplinary interaction.

• Improve research space in a manner that enriches the holistic experience for graduate and undergraduate students.

• Plan and build in an environmentally sustainable manner.

• Leverage the presence of the University to better integrate the campus and South Bethlehem.

• Improve access and walkability among and within the three campuses.

Guiding Principles

New Horizons Catalyst (shown below)

The New Horizons Catalyst demonstrates how the transformation of former Bethlehem Steel research spaces can provide unlimited potential for innovative and creative future uses. Development on Mountaintop Campus serves as the exemplar for the catalyst and depicts this area’s evolution from corporate park to a Lehigh campus experience, and envisions the adaptive reuse of Buildings B and C for innovative teaching and research facilities.

Campus Crossroads Catalyst (shown above)

The Campus Crossroads Catalyst demonstrates how a contemporary campus center can bring faculty, sta� and students together and inspire learning and collaboration outside the classroom. The University Center renovation and potential addition serves as the exemplar for the catalyst, and depicts the transformation of the historic building into a campus crossroads, providing a central space for student-focused and student-led activities, and a variety of opportunities for the entire campus community.

South Bethlehem Catalyst (shown below)

The South Bethlehem Catalyst demonstrates how participation by the University can benefit both campus and community. The adaptive reuse of the Lehigh-owned Service Building serves as the exemplar for the catalyst, and describes a space for academic use and community interaction, bringing activity and engagement to the commercial center of South Bethlehem.

Living and Learning Catalyst (shown above)

The Living and Learning Catalyst demonstrates an integrated learning experience on campus through residences that foster student interaction on many levels. As a residential research university, Lehigh strives to provide a variety of housing that merges the academic and living accommodations. A new residence hall serves as the exemplar for the catalyst and depicts an expanded student living and learning environment with common areas and shared spaces.

The enlarged site plan below depicts in greater detail the Campus Master Plan initiatives for the Asa Packer and Mountaintop Campuses. The overarching Goals of the Campus Master Plan support key components of the University’s Strategic Plan and allow for project adaptability and flexibility as the needs of the University evolve over the next ten years:

• Facilitating Interdisciplinary Research and Teaching

• Inspiring Learning and Collaboration Outside the Classroom

• Participating in the Renaissance of South Bethlehem

• Expanding the Student Living and Learning Experience

The Catalysts, highlighted by numbered red boxes, are illustrative examples of how the four Goals of the Plan might be manifested in physical form. Some of the Catalysts are site-specific—the location of the project is a “known”—while other Catalysts might be well placed on a variety of development sites. Also, some of the Catalysts have well defined functions – the program of the project is a “known”—while others may be adaptable to numerous types of functions, or are still evolving.

Interdisciplinary Academics Catalyst (shown above)

C1

C2

C3

C4

C5

Building on the University’s legacy of improvements to the landscape and path networks on the Asa Packer Campus, the Campus Master Plan prioritizes the walking experience by expanding the zones in which walking is paramount, and driving and parking are secondary, or, in some cases, not allowed. Areas which transform roadways and prioritize pedestrians fall within the car-free zone on Asa Packer Campus, and build upon past successful public realm improvements. Acknowledging the campus topography and the need to create seamless connections between the three campuses, the plan recommends a clarified roadway network and an improved shuttle system. To accommodate potential

future growth and the development of sites that are now parking lots, the Campus Master Plan also describes a parking strategy to accommodate demand in a rational and sustainable way. In tandem with catalytic projects, a series of landscape recommendations seek to create comfortable and lively open spaces, safe and walkable routes around the campuses, welcoming edges where campus meets community, and practices that embrace the natural ecology of South Mountain.

Creating Connections

To Goodman Campus