RIPON COLLEGE ROAD CLOSURES ON TRACK

Here is an update on the closure of the streets through the Ripon College campus:

Removal of roads to happen this semester - Elizabeth KundeEditor-in-Chief

While many students expected to return to campus with Seward Street and Elm Street already removed, the start date for their demolition is still indefinite.Dozens of logistical revisions to the project's blueprint and community bureaucracy are the cause of the delays.College and community officials have not lost enthusiasm for the plan, though.Professor Bob Young, project director for campus improvements, says the current goal is to begin near the middle of September once the paperwork is complete and he has received the plan from the civil engineer.President David Joyce, who is a little more hesitant, says he is committed to executing the project by the end of the semester.Despite current delays, the total demolition to be completed this fall should only take about a month to complete, barring any rain or snow."We're at the mercy of the weather," says Young. "If it rains, [the project] will go more slowly and if it doesn't, it will go more quickly."In addition to slowing down the project, precipitation would undoubteldy create messes throughout campus. However, pedestrian routes will be clearly marked to streamline traffic and keep students out of the mud."[I ask that students] think about safety and stick to those pedestrian routes," says Young.Students who are confused by the lack of construction must realize that the road to the project's execution has been filled with many obstacles and detours.Young says he attended the Plan Commission meetings and City Council meetings.In addition, a public hearing was held and approval was needed from the police department, fire department and city engineer."We finished the legwork on this project about as efficiently as you could expect," says Young.In addition to the political red tape, the college was met with resistance in the form of a handful of community members who are frustrated by change."There are a lot of folks who feel that we have an agenda for the city, but we don't," says Joyce.

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