Commission adopts UT Southern master plan outlining campus growth and preservation goals

The State Building Commission approved the inaugural master plan for UT Southern, which the university and Hastings Architecture presented as a roadmap for preserving historic campus elements while guiding future academic and residential growth.

Sam Weigel of Hastings Architecture presented the plan, describing it as a product of collaboration among UT Southern faculty, staff, students and the city of Pulaski. The plan updates campus boundaries, notes ownership between the university and the foundation, and sets priorities including a Martin–Andrews connector, student union expansion, a hybrid academic residence hall, and an auxiliary gym. Weigel said the hybrid academic residence hall concept envisions "approximately 100 beds per tower" and the plan cited a maximum current campus capacity of about 1,300 students.

The presentation highlighted retaining historic features such as the campus green and gazebo, closing West Madison and North Fifth streets to create a pedestrian core, and improving accessibility by adding elevators in a proposed nursing and science labs addition. Athletic facility enhancements and East Campus improvements also are included; the plan noted a 600-acre parcel in Elkton had been donated during the planning process. Commissioners moved to approve the master plan and adopted it by voice vote.

The master plan will serve as the framework for future projects and funding requests; specific project approvals, budgets and timelines will return to the commission as individual requests.