A highly regarded employee overturning a decision because it is an inconvenience to him sounds like something that would happen in a large corporation, not a university. However, that is what Tom Cosgro believes happened to plans to build a rock wall in a squash court on South Campus.
According to Marcus Hutchins, director of Recreation and Intramural Services, the plan to make an experimental wall for student use came about a year ago, a plan that the Outdoor Adventure Club became concerned with this semester.
Cosgro, vice president of the Outdoor Adventure Club, was under the impression that the rock wall project was approved because materials to build the wall were put in the court in Clark Hall.
"There was a little bit of a debate when we moving all the stuff in. They said 'you are not supposed to move that onto the court yet,'" said Cosgro. "Then they called Marcus, and he talked to somebody and said 'they are allowed to do this.'"
The Outdoor Adventure club went on winter break expecting the climbing wall to be built by the time they returned. Nevertheless, after Cosgro returned from break, he found the materials had been removed from the court and the plans had been put to a stop.
Cosgro is convinced that the rock wall was put to a halt because William Pelham, a Distinguished Professor of psychology and pediatric psychiatry, was upset that the court was unusable.
"Sometime in the winter I complained to the Clark Hall staff that one of the squash courts had had a pile of 2-by-4s and plywood in it for several months, rendering it unusable for squash and racquetball," Pelham said via e-mail.
The Clark Hall staff said that the construction was still being contemplated, Pelham explained.
Pelham cited several points that he brought up to the staff, such as the fact that one racquetball court had been rendered useless because a boxing ring was constructed in it, and that only two courts would remain usable if the wall was built.
He also pointed out that during the evenings and peak times on weekends it was difficult to obtain access to a court and that there was plenty of space in Clark to put a climbing wall that wouldn't interfere with other recreational space.
Not only does Pelham play racquetball on these courts, but he also runs a summer camp that uses the Clark Hall facilities. Allegedly, Pelham threatened to move the camp, which would result in the university losing money and was the reason the rock wall project was canceled, according to Cosgro.
Pelham was surprised that Cosgro believed he was the reason the project was canceled.
"I assume that the Athletics Department did some sort of needs analysis to determine what would be the best use of the space," Pelham said. " If that resulted in a decision to leave that court as a squash/racquetball court, I think that was a good decision."
Cosgro doesn't understand why there has been such a large fight over the one court because there are five more courts in Alumni Arena and the courts in Clark Hall are rarely used.
"I've been down there and the only people I ever see down in the basement are a dance club," Cosgro said. "Whenever I've been down there I have never seen another person on the racquetball courts."
Cosgro doesn't know why the university does not already have a climbing wall due to the fact that they are inexpensive, easy to construct, and something many students can enjoy.
Hutchins would not comment on the reasons the rock wall was cancelled or what the future plans for the project are. But Cosgro and the rest of the Outdoor Adventure Club plan on continuing to push for a rock wall on campus.
Additional reporting by Senior News Editor Ren LaForme.
