???Plans are in place to bring a wellness center to North Campus, expanding on the current Health Services facilities located in Michael Hall on South Campus.
???A new recreation and wellness center will be built where The Commons currently stands, according to Robert Shibley, professor and director of the Urban Design Project. The Commons will be moved to a mixed-use facility.
???"We are moving toward a late April date to announce the conclusion of the progress, and progress of the projects that are part of the individual plans," Shibley said.
???The project follows previous plans to bring a wellness center to other locations on North Campus, such as the Student Union and the Richmond Quadrangle.
???"The past plans for a North Campus health center have not been fulfilled primarily due to space limitations, and costs of necessary renovations," said Susan Snyder, director of Health Services.
???Shibley said that the new plans would take into account a future growth in the student population.
???"We will look at where we are and where we expect the growth to go, projecting a full growth scenario of 10,000 students [and] building to a scale and size required to serve that number of students," Shibley said.
???The Student Wellness Team has been providing input to UB 2020 planners, and proposed combining Health, Wellness and Counseling services into one building, according to Snyder.
???"Student Affairs is working with Dr. Shibley and his team to incorporate needed services into accessible locations. We would maintain a presence on South Campus and build a presence at the Downtown Campus," Snyder said.
???In the meantime, suggestions have been made to create temporary health services locations on North Campus, but none of the suggestions were practical, according to Snyder.
???"So far, no suggested temporary location has been large or comprehensive enough to house a full health service," Snyder said.
???Creating temporary health service centers outside of South Campus would alter the problem from one of location to that of availability, according to Snyder.
"We would have to put restrictions on who gets to utilize it and for what. This would change the reason for dissatisfaction, but not eliminate it," Snyder said.
???A wellness center on North Campus would serve as a central location for students seeking health services, according to Snyder.
"It is our vision that the North Campus would have the largest, most comprehensive facility and the South and Downtown campuses would be served with satellite locations with potentially different hours and possibly more limited services," Snyder said.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
