Campus Master Plan includes new trees

Adam Holt
News Writing Student

Tree-lined walking paths and tree-shaded buildings will greet campus visitors in the future, but first someone has to plant 250 trees or more, maybe many more. That job will fall to the workers in Facilities Management, said Larry Barnes, project manager.

The 2020 Campus Master Plan is a 10-year beautification project to give OCCC a more polished look and campus identity, Barnes said. The idea is to have these projects done by the year 2020.

Though no timeline for planting trees is set, he said, Facilities Management anticipates planting hundreds of new trees in the upcoming years.

Some of these trees probably will come from the school’s own tree farm, said J.B. Messer, Facilities Management director. The farm on the southwest edge of campus contains magnolia, sycamore and redbud trees, among others.

Messer said additional trees are likely to be purchased from outside sources. No decision has been made on the variety of trees to be used on the project, he said.

“Slower growing, hardwood shade trees” will be the characteristics they will be searching for, Messer said.

After securing the number of trees needed, the next step will be planting the trees using the plan's blueprint.

The completion of the tree-landscaping plan will reap many benefits, Barnes said.

A more aesthetically pleasing campus will help OCCC recruit more students, he said, and the air quality will improve due to removal of air pollutants through the leaves and the trees’ surface.

Also in the 2020 Campus Master Plan are more outdoor gathering places for students to enjoy. Trees will help in shading and beatifying these areas, Messer said.

He said the appearance of the buildings will be affected by this new “green infrastructure.”

Lining walkways with trees to give shade also will add a more refined look, he said. Planting trees along buildings will give more definition to their appearance while also helping keep down the energy costs of the buildings.

Although Facilities Management has many ideas for the trees, Messer said, nothing yet is set in stone. The Board of Regents and college administration will decide when the project will proceed.

There is still plenty of planning around this idea and the other projects in the 2020 Campus Master Plan, but these trees will very likely see the light of day.