Stadium woods will remain erect after a long battle with the athletic department over where the football facility will go
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Stadium Woods is no longer on the chopping block.
Virginia Tech President Charles Steger announced Stadium Woods will not be considered as a location for the planned football practice facility last Tuesday, following a recommendation from Sherwood Wilson, the vice president for administrative services.
The announcement marks the end of a nearly nine-month controversy regarding the future of the 14-acre old-growth forest. The woods contain as many as 59 white oaks estimated to be older than 300 years.
Wilson's recommendation that the university consider other possible locations came after an official report was released by the Athletic Practice Facility Site Evaluation Committee at the end of May. The committee was formed by President Steger in January and tasked with helping to decide whether to build the proposed 2.1 acre practice facility in Stadium Woods.
Kyle Gardiner was the SGA's Director of Sustainability during much of the debate surrounding Stadium Woods last year. He first found out the news via Twitter, where a friend had shared the story.
“It's fantastic. I think the critical thing for the moment is they're saved,” Gardiner said, “But we have to remember (Sherwood Wilson) didn't provide any recommendation to preserve stadium woods for all time.”
Wilson's memo to Steger strongly supported the findings of the committee, with one exception: it did not recommend designating the woods as an old growth reserve or another form of long-term protection.
“While this might the prudent action to take today,” Wilson wrote in the memo, “these designations are permanent and we do not want to restrict the ability of future leaders to manage the physical campus 100 years from now.”
Friends of Stadium Woods, a group that played a pivotal role in mobilizing the Blacksburg and Virginia Tech communities in support of the forest, expressed a sense of muted victory in a statement it released after the announcement. The statement added that the group would continue to “advocate for the permanent preservation” of the woods and that the university was tarnishing its “green reputation.”
Sarah Gugercin is a research associate in the Horticulture Department and became active in the group last spring.
“I know there are a lot of options for protecting areas and some may be more or less favorable to the university in terms of future flexibility in planning,” Gugercin said. “But, I think that some sort of management plan needs to happen for this area.”
University Spokesman Larry Hincker confirms that the university doesn't have a timeline on how to proceed from here.
As for where the football facility will end up being built, the committee's report does suggest a variety of orientations on Washington Street next to the basketball practice facility, where tennis courts and a roller hockey rink now stand.
Friends of Stadium Woods refers to this area as the “original location” intended for the athletic facility by the Virginia Tech Master Plan.
Hincker denies this claim, saying the Master Plan had suggested the space be used for any athletic facility, but not specifically football. Instead, the athletics department built the Hahn Hurst Basketball Practice Facility on that location in 2009.
“To say that the university changed its mind, it really misunderstands the nature of the Master Plan,” Hincker said. “The Master Plan is a rough guide, it doesn't say exactly what the facility is and how it is going to be.”
If the university continues to follow the committee's recommendations and considers the Washington Street location they may find themselves faced with other opposition.
Cory Bernhards is a doctoral student at Tech, and an adviser for the roller hockey leagues that use the rink all year round.
The current roller hockey rink is newly built, replaced three and a half years after being torn down for the basketball facility.
“Given all the pressure that was forced upon them with that Stadium Woods campaign, I've been preparing for it,” said Bernhards, “Now we know for sure that we need to do something about it.”
Wilson's memo does note the tennis courts and roller hockey rink, saying that planning staff will take them into consideration. APFSEC's report recommends that construction is “completed or at least initiated” before the current facilities are shut down for construction.
Regardless of what happens in the future, Gugercin will remember the battle for Stadium Woods as proof that students do have an impact on the school.
A version of this article appeared in the Aug 27 issue of the Collegiate Times.
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I would like to stress that if the Athletic Department tears down the roller hockey rink for the second time they need to finish construction for a new roller hockey rink location BEFORE they proceed with any demolition. This is the only way to ensure the survival of our clubs and not repeat what happened four years ago.
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I appreciate the recognition that the author gives students, They do deserve a share of the credit. But it was the community at large, to a great degree unaffiliated with VT, that helped steward the woods over the Summer, continued the letter to the editor writing campaign, Had signs printed, continued to collect signatures and kept a cautious eye on Larry Hinker and the development staff.
Great Job everyone - but were not done. Let's get that irreplaceable remnant of ancient forest into a conservancy easement!
Any you can still join the facebook group while the work continues - https://www.facebook.com/StadiumWoods
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I appreciate the recognition that the author gives students, They do deserve a share of the credit. But it was the community at large, to a great degree unaffiliated with VT, that helped steward the woods over the Summer, continued the letter to the editor writing campaign, Had signs printed, continued to collect signatures and kept a cautious eye on Larry Hinker and the development staff.
Great Job everyone - but were not done. Let's get that irreplaceable remnant of ancient forest into a conservancy easement!
Any you can still join the facebook group while the work continues - https://www.facebook.com/StadiumWoods
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You bring up a good point that even though Stadium Woods is on Virginia Tech's campus most of the activism and work was done by non-students so now that the roller hockey rink and tennis courts are going to be destroyed I hope that you will support the actual Virginia Tech students and their needs as much as you support the woods.
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The short-term plan to preserve the Stadium Woods from placing the entire athletic practice facility in it is indeed an inspirational outcome from student-faculty-town-alumni collaboration. I was able to serve on the committee referenced in the article and would like to note two things. First, the Master Plan is a 'guide' BUT the basketball facility and indoor practice facility were both outlined to be built on Washington Street (http://www.facilities.vt.edu/documents/oup/masterplan/VATech_2006-2016_Master_Plan.pdf). Thus, Hincker is wrong in saying that an indoor facility was not planned for this original location and that basketball was the only building on the Plan. Secondly, our committee recommended funding and re-building the roller hockey rink before any construction is slated for an athletic facility site on the Washington Street tennis courts. Cory, you are remiss in stating that supporting the roller hockey rink is supporting "actual" VT students... thousands of VT students spoke up for the Woods as well (petitions, rallies, buzz on campus). Students can root for both the Woods and the rink :)
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Thank you, Kara! Very well written. Congrats to everyone on this momentous achievement! We won't forget that the battle isn't 100% won, but it's GREAT to know that Stadium Woods will be preserved for the foreseeable future.
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As a Friend of Stadium Woods, I would like to add that we also insist that the tennis and roller hockey rinks be replaced before ANY construction takes place.
Also, I don't think that the article reflects exactly how I feel so let me clarify-
1- I am SO happy that they decided not to build in the woods
2- I am disappointed that they decided not to protect the woods though I can understand their apprehension. I look forward to working with Friends, students, administration and the Town of Blacksburg (who has reached out to VT on this issue) to find a way to protect the this rare forest.
3- The top priority right now is to establish a management plan for the woods
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Great points Kara.
Friends of Stadium Woods has always advocated that in the case of building at the tennis courts that they and the roller hockey rink be replaced BEFORE construction.
I would also like to clarify my feelings about the decisions as they are not very clear in this article. I guess I do not interview well...
1- I am happy about the decision not to build in the woods
2- While I am disappointed at the decision not to protect the woods, I can understand the administrations apprehension, it is a big commitment. We (Friends of the Woods) have some more work to do and look forward to working with VT to preserve the woods.
3- We need to come up with a management plan for the woods.
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We truly appreciate everything that everyone has done to save the woods and to advocate for permanent preservation of the old growth white oak urban forest. This monumental effort has had incredible widespread support. Our goals now are to advocate for a management plan for the woods. In fact the Arboretum Committee, under the new leadership of Chair Dr. John Seiler, has already begun discussing the development of a management plan for the woods. Additionally the VT Environmental Coalition and students in John Randolph's environmental planning senior seminar are already discussing the same. The second goal is to secure permanent protection via a conservation easement or another preservation vehicle to protect the woods in perpetuity. We will not rest until both of these goals are met. Who gets "credit" for saving the woods is irrelevant. It is truly a campus, alumni, local, regional, national and global effort that has come together as a unified voice with the mission and explicit goal of protecting Stadium Woods from development. We can, and should, ALL TAKE CREDIT, for the strong advocacy effort that has prevented the destruction to date of the rare and ancient old growth white oak urban forest remnant known as Stadium Woods. We celebrate this victory while remaining realistic and vigilant about the protections still needed to prevent future development of Stadium Woods. Rebekah Paulson, Ex. Dir. of the Friends of Stadium Woods.
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Thank you for your support. You can help by signing our newly updated petition to save the roller hockey rink and tennis courts:
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/save-virginia-tech-roller-hockey-rink-and-tennis/
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I just signed it and also shared w/ Save Stadium Woods on Facebook.
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Thanks Sarah, we appreciate your support!
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Good point Patrick!I’ll have to try some of these for my subject lines as well ….Cheers,
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