After whirlwind of construction, North Campus is more crowded, no longer on the boring side

MARGARET MYERS / Daily Interesting artwork, such as Alexander Liberman's sculpture "Begob," is meant to make North Campus more popular with students. However, many people still think of it as quiet and isolated from the rest of the University.

By Kelly Bembas
For the Daily

From the multitude of coffee shops and hot dog stands to the recently revamped Diag, life on Central Campus is not short on character. It's where students jam houses large and small for parties, head to rallies or catch sporting events - it is also where most classes are held. Few undergraduates will argue it holds much of this University's history and tradition. But although hustle and bustle is never to hard to find on the campus' core, empty space definitely is.

That's why, according to University planners, almost all future additions to campus will be added to North Campus.

Located in what was once complete wilderness, North Campus offers a more peaceful setting and is home to most engineering, art, architecture, urban planning and music classes. It's also where you can find Baits Housing and Bursley Hall - the University's largest residence halls.

But while Bursley is not only to be one of the biggest dorms in North America but also to sport the campus' best food, most students who live there and in other North Campus dwellings have complaints. Most notable is the fact that most undergrads do not have access to a car - and must rely on blue University buses to reach Central Campus.

"The buses are very inconsistent. Once I waited 40 minutes for a bus that is supposed to come every 20 minutes," said LSA first-year student Dave Werny. "It's hard to be on North Campus because sometimes friends on Central Campus don't want to wait for you to get on a bus and meet them somewhere. It causes a big kink in our personal lives."

Recently, University planners gave North Campus a kind of face-lift in hopes of making the atmosphere seem more hip and less purely academic. A bell tower was added next to the North Campus Commons in 1996. The addition made the University one of only two schools in the nation to have two bell towers, the other being the University of Indiana. Also a "Diag North" was added between Pierpont Commons and the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Building.

Contemporary art adds to the more modern atmosphere North Campus is striving to achieve. It features pieces such as the "Wave Field," a sculpture of dirt and grass designed by Maya Lin - the creator of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, DC - and the bright orange "Begob," a 20-foot tall sculpture by Alexander Liberman.

Years ago, Pierpoint Commons was constructed to be similar to the Michigan Union. It now houses Little Caesar's, Espresso Royal Caffe, Wok Express and Leonardo's Cafe. It also has a Barnes and Noble Bookstore, ATM machines and video games.

The Media Union is latest addition to the folds of North Campus. With library and large computing facilities, most in the business agree it is one of a kind.

"The Media Union is the most awe-inspiring building I've ever set foot in. The aura of technology permeates everything," said LSA first-year student and Bursley resident Chris Myers. The three-year-old Media Union features a virtual reality laboratory, teleconferencing center and more than 500 computer workstations.

But even with all of the additions and renovations, most students still find life on North Campus dull. University Planner Fred Mayer does not agree.

"I think that North Campus is different from Central Campus in that Central Campus was built in and around a town and North Campus was built with more of a sensitivity to nature," Mayer said. "The nice thing here at Michigan is you have the choice if you like to be down in the middle of everything you can live on Central Campus, but if you like the setting and a more peaceful atmosphere, North Campus is the place."

Mayer said plans to further spruce-up North Campus are in the works, but his department has currently set its sights back on Central Campus.

"There is always long-range planning going on for North Campus, but on the drawing board right now is an addition to the Dow Building, which we hope to expand to the west sometime in the near future," he said.

Even though it is not the most exciting place to live North Campus is a necessity.

"I hope the additions made North Campus more exciting," Mayer said. "But most additions have given us needed facilities that we had no room for anywhere else."

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