And now it’s time to start the tweaks

Have you ever decided to try on a pair of shoes only to discover they were too wide and too short? The area of your footprint and the area inside the shoe may be exactly the same, but that doesn’t help your toes that are jammed against the toe of the shoe.

After our architects finished their latest round of designs, we discovered that not everything will fit exactly the way we were thinking. We can make the building a little wider but eventually the lovey green courtyard between the two buildings would be too tight in some places. Or we can extend the arc of Huntsman Hall but then it would extend so close to J. Hanna Moen Hall that the people who live there might feel that a building was invading their personal space.

Ken Snyder

This is not a setback. It’s a normal part of the process. It’s a time to do some tweaking.

The architects have been sharing with us some different ideas and models to still provide the full program we have planned, a beautiful courtyard, and a design that doesn’t encroach on other buildings. These new proposals might change the look of the building a bit. All of the options we are looking at will still be four stories, and all options still wrap around the foot of the George S. Eccles Business Building. All options will still preserve terrific views of the south end of Cache Valley.

However, by adjusting the arc of the building, our architects have shown us we could create more courtyard space and more breathing room between Huntsman Hall and Moen Hall. We haven’t accepted any of the latest plans but we have found elements of them all that we like. Our architects are working on a new proposal that combines some of the best elements of all the plans. It’s all very doable.

- Ken Snyder