Week 9 Observations

On Tuesday, March 17th, we got a chance to explore Campus Town, and discuss the various changes to the landscape over the years.  Apparently it wasn't always as glorious as it is today, as the city was largely unwilling to spruce up the area, as the students who lived there didn't pay taxes to the city and by and large didn't vote in any of the local elections, creating a vicious cycle.  We discussed the "mexican standoff" between the university, the city, and the city's residents, and whole process of revamping the area didn't begin until one snooty Chancellor had the AUDACITY to call out the city of Champaign.  After lots of political tomfoolery, a UIUC professor and students took it upon themselves to conduct a survey and kick the overhaul into high gear.

The first order of business was trying to correct the drainage issues, as many buildings north of green and on green experienced flooding in the lower levels.  To solve this, new infrastructure was put in place to facilitate the flow of water away from these buildings and to a large depository west of Champaign.  The boneyard is part of this, as it runs west underneath many of the buildings in Campus Town.

With the flooding mitigated, it was determined that Green Street should be more conducive to walking, as it was once a four-lane through way with narrow side walks, and a major buzz kill to anyone trying to get their morning Starbucks.  Furthermore, when the snowy winters came around, the narrow sidewalks coupled with the four lane road proved to be quite hazardous for pedestrians and drivers alike.  Though the changes didn't go quite as far as were originally requested, the sidewalks on both sides of the street were widened significantly and the road was reduced to two lanes with a turning lane in the middle.  Going along with the safety factor, many buildings and businesses whose drive throughs emptied directly onto Green Street vacated or moved, such as the former bank that is now home to Geo--I mean Papa D's.

With phase two rolled out and a changing landscape on Green Street, many developers saw the opportunities unfolding in Champaign and decided to ride the gravy train of premier apartment spaces.  All down the street, high rise apartment buildings are going up, looking to capitalize on the students who want luxury apartments without the ten minute walk to campus.  Where once there were few buildings more than two stories high, these highrises--such as green street towers and those by JSM development and Bankier apartments--are now giving Campus Town somewhat of a sky line as the city gradually shifts towards a more urban environment.

I don't know exactly what Green Street and Campus Town used to look like before, but I can't imagine it was very pleasant relative to what we have now.  Plus now we have Panda Express, which is awesome.