Traditional garments, elegant gowns, and out-of-this-world ou…
At the Bates Trashion Show, one person’s trash is not just another’s treasure, but perhaps even another’s trend.
The first part of the Campus Facilities Master Plan was a comprehensive inventory and analysis of current facilities and a synthesis of the needs and desires of the various campus constituencies. All campus facilities were entered into an extensive database to be used for future planning.
While facilities audits were under way, the consultants conducted an extensive set of meetings and interviews with a variety of campus constituencies to determine their needs, visions, and goals for their own areas and for the College in coming years.
Technical data was gathered about patterns of room and building use, and enrollment patterns. The consultants also collected comparative information about the state of facilities at several selected peer institutions.
The Master Planning process solicited input from all parties who use campus facilities. Perceived needs and visions varied by constituency. How were programs defined and how were spaces really used? Were facilities suitable to the needs of the program? How would changes in programs affect facility needs?
Groups consulted in invited or open meetings (Fall 2003):
Was the campus utilities infrastructure adequate? How did people circulate around campus? What were the most frequently used spaces? Were buildings accessible and well-identified? What areas were best suited for any future construction? Did the boundaries between the campus and the local community need to be reviewed?
How much space did we have, and for what purposes was it being used? Would our classroom spaces meet the needs of a changing academic program? Did we have adequate housing and dining facilities to meet our desired or optimal enrollment levels? Were our facilities adequate to meet our vision for the campus? How did Bates compare with some of its peers?
What was the condition of campus physical facilities? How much deferred maintenance was there? Were facilities being put to their “best use”? In considering current building standards and future campus needs, was it better to renovate existing facilities or to do new construction? Were there any campus “sacred spaces” that should not be changed significantly? A facilities audit was intended to help identify the most immediate facilities needs, and to help assign logical priorities to future campus development.
About Campus Housing
Typically, about 90 percent of students live on campus in Bates housing. Bates College has never had fraternities or sororities.
Housing options include:
Nearly all students, including many students residing off-campus, dine together in Commons, located in Chase Hall.
How much land?
The Bates main campus consists of 109 acres, located in a residential area of Lewiston.
Bates-Morse Mountain view
The College also has access to the 574-acre Bates-Morse Mountain Conservation Area in Phippsburg, which preserves one of the few remaining undeveloped barrier beaches on the Atlantic coast. Nearby is the Bates College Coastal Center at Shortridge, including 80 acres of woodland and freshwater habitat, a scientific field station, and a retreat center.
Facilities inventory
By the end of Phase I, the Sasaki consultants will provide the College with an updated and state-of-the-art database with extensive details about the square footage, the uses, and the condition of each facility on campus. Electronic “blueprints” of each building will be used to further guide the planning process.
The Old and the New
Hathorn Hall, completed in 1857, is Bates’ first building and the campus’ most notable landmark. Home to the mathematics and foreign language departments, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Pettengill Hall, built in 1999, is the newest academic facility at Bates. It houses Bates’ social science departments and related interdisciplinary programs, as well as the Perry Atrium, an 8,000-square-foot, three-story glass atrium overlooking Lake Andrews.