First impressions matter, especially to high school students contemplating the next four years of their lives. Prior to improvements, prospective students visited the University of North Dakota and encountered a wide, bleak, four-lane road that was difficult for pedestrians to maneuver.

The university, in partnership with the City of Grand Forks, recently completed a $13 million renovation of a one-mile stretch of University Avenue through the heart of campus. The design converted this entrance road into a cherished asset for the campus and community. Three key goals were established during the design process: improve safety, establish a more welcoming "front door" for the campus, and ensure maintained winter interest while not sacrificing long-term durability.

A Look Back
The university was founded in 1883 along the English Coulee west of Grand Forks and has since been enveloped by the western fabric of Grand Forks. Across its almost 150-year history, the university has faced turmoil and tribulations. Despite challenges, the University of North Dakota has established itself as a leader in aerospace engineering, law, and medical studies.

With development over the years, the quality and safety of University Avenue was overlooked. Planted medians were paved for ease of maintenance and a web of streets, driveways, and 29 crosswalks along the corridor caused confusion for pedestrians and motorists alike.

The Idea Takes Hold
Based on various planning studies for UND's campus and University Avenue, the City of Grand Forks and the university partnered to pursue, and be ultimately awarded, a Main Street Initiative Grant from North Dakota's Governor's office to convert an important section of University Avenue to a complete street with a focus on pedestrians. RDG Planning & Design became involved with the planning of the improvements after being selected to serve as the main campus landscape architectural consultants in 2017.

The landscape architectural team focused on ways to emphasize the east-west axis of University Avenue, which is a main entry from student housing north of the street, and pushed to maintain a long view of the corridor.

Designing to Correct

 
The sidewalk previously varied in width and alignment, limiting sight-lines; improvements have established a consistent sidewalk width of 10' to offer a better view and more comfortable passage along the street. The design team diligently reduced the number of pedestrian and vehicular conflict points through a reduction in crosswalks and integrating a dedicated cyclist lane with bus pullouts.
Specific crossing locations were chosen to keep and renovate after conducting a pedestrian flow study. The team was able to reduce the number of crossings by almost a third, from 29 to 11. To further reduce conflicts, multiple entry drives were removed or realigned, allowing medians to provide more consistent edge conditions.

Median plantings and raised planters were added to reduce the urge for students to cross at will and encourage the use of strategically placed crosswalks.

Aesthetic decisions along University Avenue were of utmost importance to the university. A family of furnishings for the complete street were developed based on creating a cohesive, celebratory, and unique campus environment.

There was a preference for the collegiate gothic architecture currently present across the campus, which focuses on student life traditions. This architechtural style accentuates the fact that this road serves as a signature "Front Door", encouraging the design team to think of this street as belonging to the university, and not the city.

Street-level Products
One such unique characteristic serving the desired aesthetic was the selection of pavers. Unilock Town Hall pavers were chosen for the median buffer zone and at the bus pull outs. The Promenade Plank paver, differing in finish aesthetic and color, was selected to better identify crosswalks, as the rust and red blend contrasts the surrounding concrete pavement.

For winter durability purposes, a color treated concrete was used within the crosswalks in lieu of pavers.

Adding Greenery
Plantings are one of the more signature ways to distinguish a complete street. Over 15,000 perennials, shrubs, ornamental grasses, and trees were added to the streetscape through the design, with numerous opportunities for UND horticultural staff to infuse annual plantings to maintain additional seasonal interest.

The landscape architecture team worked through iterations of a family of two new custom cast stone urns for the campus, a 4' wide in grade and a 6' wide raised urn. The geometrics of the urns reference the collegiate gothic architecture while modernizing the final form. The team worked with in-house lighting designers to install flush mounted up-lighting at the base of the urns to highlight the architectural character.

The cast stone planter walls within the medians were heavily studied to provide a strong connection to existing architectural elements on campus. A pattern of collegiate gothic arches and masonry-like modules set in a running bond, provides interest for passersby. Care was taken to establish consistent elevations across the top of the planter walls, while the grade of the street rises and falls to appropriately convey stormwater. Longer runs of raised beds were interrupted by the 6' raised urns.

Making a Strong Imprint
During initial conceptual design, iconic markers were desired within the center median to celebrate campus traditions.
The RDG team worked with in-house graphic designers and artists to design and fabricate the iconic light columns seen on campus today.

A total of twelve light columns represents the nine colleges within the university and three student life traditions. Their exterior form mimics lanterns found on historic campus buildings, while allowing space for unique patterning on each facade. To complement the streetscape, campus standard lighting, was selected as both the pedestrian and vehicular light through campus. The regular cadence of both were of high importance to show intentionality and repetition.
Apart from the right-of-way, the university wanted to provide a strong connection to campus, especially on the East side of the English Coulee, which is more directly connected to the historic core of the University. Formal arched walkways lead to the front door of each campus building from the main walk along University Avenue through this zone.

Custom arched cast stone benches formalize the archways and provide dramatic downlighting in the evening. The connections to University Avenue are framed with a series of architectural monuments and internally illuminated building monument signage. Custom fencing, now the campus standard, formalizes the edge of the sidewalk and is housed within a continuous planting area, accentuating the directionality of University Avenue.
Winter is a valued part of campus life for UND. During the design process, the team focused on creating structure and interest apart from plantings. Winter maintenance and the snow removal process guided many design decisions, such as material choices, detailing, and element placement; selections were made to handle the salting process for deicing. Lighting equipment, especially drivers, were selected to perform in upwards of -40 degrees Fahrenheit.

Final Views
Through a full transformation of University Avenue, the University of North Dakota now has a safer, stronger streetscape serving as the opening and welcoming image of the campus. University Avenue celebrates the campus and traditions, while respecting multi-modal traffic and the challenges of winter. It is hoped that the design choices are sustainably maintained and enjoyed through the next several generations of students, and that the first impression becomes memorable for prospective students.