Lindsey Huling's Blog

ADA Scavenger Hunt

Friday, October 8th, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | No Comments

After observing many of the different ADA adaption’s made on campus I finally came up with a list for ten positive and ten negative aspects on campus. For many of my positive discoveries I used the BGSU Disability Services Student Handbook that I found on the BGSU website. The handbook lays out a great deal of accommodations that the university has for people with disabilities. It also has contact lists for the correct administrators to get in touch with if you have a disability.

Positive Aspects of ADA on BGSU Campus:

• Renovations are currently being made to many areas on campus, allowing better handicap assessable areas. An example would be the sidewalks along Ridge Road near Eppler and Olscamp, they have been newly paved making smoother and easier for wheelchairs to ride upon.
• All buildings have electronic doors to open up so that those with disabilities can open the doors easier.
• In all of the newer buildings, such as the union, there are a lot of open areas with large hallways making it easier for those with disabilities to get around.
• The Jerome Library has a whole service dedicated to helping those with disabilities. Since they know that some people with have trouble retrieving books, articles or other documents, handicapped students are able to request their information and have it be available within 24 hours.
• Founders’ residence hall has what I believe to be one of the best ramps for disabled students. It is easy to get into their hall as well as get into their dining facility.
• Although our recreation center on campus is not the best, I do think it is wonderful that our pool has the equipment necessary to get someone in the pool who has a disability.
• BGSU has four different scholarships alone, to give out to students with disabilities.
• BGSU provides, free of charge, rental of tape recorders and video cameras for those with disabilities who may need the help during class.
• BGSU provides exam accommodations for those with disabilities; these accommodations include extended time, oral tests, modifications, reader services, scribe services, etc.
• For those students who are hard of hearing, the university provides them with one of three services, an interpreter, or one of two computer programs; Typewell Meaning-for-Meaning Translation, or, Computer Assisted Real-Time Captioning (CART).

Negative Aspects of ADA on BGSU Campus:

• Some buildings, such as the Kreisher Sundial, make it very difficult for those with handicaps to get into their facility. The only way to directly get into the Sundial is by stairs, if you have a wheelchair or any other disability you must go through the dorms, take an elevator to the second level then find your way to the eating facility. The other problem with this is that in order to use the elevators you must have a PED to the building.
• Since some halls are very old, many of the door ways are very small and it can be a tight squeeze for someone to use the bathroom even when they have no disability. Since these rooms are so small I would think it would be very difficult for those with disabilities to use the restroom in older halls.
• While I am unsure of how many students with disabilities live on campus and have a car, I have noticed that in the on campus parking lot (Lot 12), there are no handicap spots available. Even if there are currently no students who would utilize the spaces, I believe they should have the option.
• As far as I know, BGSU campus busses do not accommodate to those with wheelchairs and other disabilities. While wheelchair accessible busses are expensive I feel those students have just as much of a right to take the bus around town or around campus, especially on a cold day when it is hard to maneuver the wheelchair through the snow.
• Many of the doors on campus, as in Eppler, tend to be very heavy, with people who have trouble using their hands; it could be very difficult for them to open the door.
• The classroom we use for this class is very tight. The desks are always smashed together and there is little room to roam around. If you were in a wheel chair it would be hard to get around our room and there is only one table for those with disabilities to sit at. In many rooms that I have classes in, there are only desks, no tables for those with wheel chairs to sit at.
• In many large lecture halls the only way you can sit at tables is if you walk up or down steps. This poses a problem for many students with disabilities because if you are in a room where you must walk down steps, that means you are far away from the lecture and will most likely have trouble seeing and hearing the professor.
• My roommate has told me many times that when she uses the elevators in the music building that they get stuck continuously, to the point where she no longer uses them. If someone with a disability had to use these elevators each day it would not only be annoying to get stuck, but is could cause them to be late or even miss a class.
• After reading the article in class about student recreation centers on college campuses not being well suited for those with disabilities, it got me thinking about our own recreation center. I definitely do not think the SRC is well equipped for those with disabilities because for general machine and free weight usage, there is little room for people with disabilities.
• Of the resident halls that I have lived in, during a fire alarm there is only the noise going off, not a flashing light. For those students who are deaf I feel it would cause a major problem for them to not know when to get out of the building during a drill or a real fire.

Capital Planning

Tuesday, September 21st, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | 1 Comment

Although it may seem blunt, the one thing I learned from Bob Waddle is that I never want to be a director of capital planning. In his position he has so much to decide and deliberate with other people, I am sure I am not cut out for that position. While I do not want to be in a capital planning position I did find Mr. Waddle’s presentation very interesting. He and his two coworkers were very truthful and knowledgeable of the subject, allowing our class to be educated.

One of the most interesting topics that Mr. Waddle mentioned was about the design of the facility. He strongly suggested that as a capital planner, do not design the building yourself, let the professionals do it. From my standpoint I feel this would be difficult because I believe everyone gets thoughts in their head about how they want a building to look. Now I would by no means want to design the building myself, but it would be hard to just put together a list of wants and needs and then give it to the designer not knowing what you may get. The other interesting factor that all the men pointed out was that renderings are not always accurate. It was nice to see that they were all being honest when they said that the Wolfe Center Theater looks way bigger in its pictures than it is in real life and, that Mr. Waddle, said he has never been as disappointed as when he saw the brick being laid for the new resident hall.

I understand that building ‘green’ facilities these days can be difficult and extremely expensive, however, I feel that anyone building a new structure should make them energy efficient. I was very pleased to hear that both the Wolfe Center and the Stroh Center are going to be LEED facilities but it disappointing to know that the new residence halls may not be up to par with the set standards of LEED. After doing some research I found two universities, Colorado State University and Norwich University, in Vermont, that have built and renovated their facilities in order to be in compliance with LEED.

Norwich University, located in Vermont, is normally known for being the oldest private military university as well as the birthplace of the ROTC, but in this case we are talking about its new residence hall.  The South Hall dormitory has just earned the universities first LEED Gold certificate but is not the only green building on campus. Norwich University is considered one of the most energy efficient universities in the country by having high-efficiency lighting, vending machines that turn off at night and windows in dorms and offices that are energy efficient.  Also unique to the campus is that the dining facilities serve Vermont grown food and they compost any waste left over.

As for Colorado State University, they have been deemed ‘The Green University’.  It has been over 50 years since the college has seen such construction and growth on its campus but representatives are proud to say that they are trying to leave as little a carbon footprint as possible. On its main campus alone there are over 20 new renovations and constructions in the making. The website provides links keeping students informed about all the new projects going on and also explains in a video why it is they are choosing to stay such a green college. By having each project having a LEED expert in on the design it is no wonder that Colorado State University is one of the greenest colleges in the country. Other than the LEED expert, planners have provided buildings with solar panels, the use of responsible forest management wood, and the use of renewable energy.

I recognize that doing such an overhaul on a university, such as the one in Colorado, is unfeasible for the majority of colleges, such as Bowling Green. In my opinion though, that does not mean that the university shouldn’t still build energy efficient facilities one by one. What I truly liked about Colorado State University was that they had a whole site designated to the facilities management team and keeping students informed. With the amount of construction going on around BGSU I feel that students would benefit from having such a website providing students with lot closings, building renovations, landscape renovations, where funding is coming from and so on. If BGSU was to compare their construction with other higher education institutions as we are, I think they could really learn a lot about how to address the updates with students and think more about trying to be a LEED certified institution.

Overall the presentation given by Mr. Waddle was very informational. He was very straight forward with what his views were but still made his jobs seem interesting and make students want to be in the position. Even as an outsider looking in I saw the complexity it takes to begin the construction of a building. It is amazing the amount of time it takes to find a construction company who has a low bid, great group chemistry with your workers and has the expertise to get the project done. Even after that process workers are needed to keep a close eye on the project to know that all the construction mile stones are being met. Had Mr. Waddle and his co-workers not come in to our class, I assure you I would not have realized the difficulty of capital planning.

Program Statement

Tuesday, September 21st, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | No Comments

Program statements are crucial during any construction project for a number of reasons. In a lecture given on September 9, 2010 program statements are detailed descriptions of all requirements taking place during the construction process, only in written documented form. It provides viewers with estimated costs along with any agreements made between the user, institution and the consultant. Lastly, program statements also detail the goals and objectives of each area of the project taking place.

Listed below are a few detailed suggestions as to how the Eppler Complex can be remodeled to correctly fit the needs of students, staff, and faculty.

• Meet current fire, safety and ADA regulations.
• Check all fire alarms to make sure they are in working order, if not, have them be replaced with new ones.
• Replace all window blinds with vertical shades for a newer updated look.
• Repaint the walls, using different colors, in order to help make the building less confusing for visitors trying to get around the complex.
• Designate a room to be a computer lab, adding 30 new computers allowing classes to adequately use the space.
• Replace all windows with energy efficient ones in order to save energy costs in the long run.
• Add more signage directing users where to go, including posting maps of where in the building the individual is.
• Replace any current broken or worn down furniture with new modern furniture.
• Update carpeting throughout the building to make the facility look cleaner and less worn.
• Offer recycling bins in each classroom and throughout the hallways of the entire Eppler Center.
• Strive to renovate Eppler into a LEED Certified building, at any certification level possible.

While searching for renovations done by other college campus’ I found that many are now renovating to become ‘greener’. At Los Angeles Valley College, they have an entire website dedicated to the renovations being done on their campus. One of the pages includes information on how the college is becoming a greener place by designing its buildings to be LEED certified. When I saw how many universities were switching to being greener, I got the inspiration to have a goal in the renovations be that the Eppler building be LEED certified also.

One of the renovations on my list is to check all fire alarms. While this may seem weird, after having read an article about Santa Ana College I immediately put the check on my list. According to this article, Santa Ana College failed to replace or fix the fire alarms in seven of their buildings. After it was brought to a student reporter’s attention and an article was released, it was then that the college said they would fix the alarms. They also stated everything would be in working order in 20 to 30 days. To me this seems absolutely ridiculous, how could a college fail to have proper working fire alarms? Even though they are going to fix them a month still seems too long, I would think they would want to fix them immediately in order for their students to be safe.

Hopefully with the renovations that I listed Eppler will become a better place for everyone. I hope that the building will look better and function better.

SWOT Blog

Friday, September 17th, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | No Comments

Brilliant Event Planning Blog

Strengths

• Large– Once you start really looking into the website you realize how much it has to offer you, not only is there a blog with people’s opinions, but there are also links to other areas of the website providing event planning information.
• Accessible– Brilliant Event Planning has used more than just a website to attract clients, it has a blog, a Facebook page and you are able to follow them on Twitter.
• Knowledgeable– The company of the blog seems to be very knowledgeable of event planning and everything that goes with it, planning, coordinating, executing, decorations, proposals, ect.
• Variety– Brilliant Event Planning offers a large variety of topics in its blogs. These topics can be easily viewed by clicking its subject on the right side of the screen under categories.
• Updated Regularly– Many websites or blogs are often great for a few weeks but then are soon left behind and forgotten about. This one seems to be updated regularly, usually at least once a week.
• Appeal– The website for the blog is very appealing to the eye. It is decorated with light colors and does not draw away from the man point of the blog, events.

Weaknesses

• Confusing– When I first entered the blog I almost immediately went to another page because I was unsure of the message the company was trying to get across and I didn’t what it was about.
• Cluttered-I like the layout of the blog for the most part but the pictures on it are extremely large, making the page cluttered in my opinion. I think it would be better if the company made the pictures smaller and then linked them to another page allowing guests to view larger pictures.
• Company Advertising- Since I found the blog through a search engine it took me directly to the blog page, leaving me unsure of who was in charge of the blog. With a name like Brilliant Event Planning I didn’t automatically think that was the name of the organization, therefore it took me a while to realize who ran the website. I think they should do more advertising on their home page of the blog so onlookers know exactly who the company is.
• Retention-Since the website is mainly dedicated to weddings and people only get married once (hopefully), the blog is only good for a ‘one time use’ per say. I think that if the blog were to equally cover weddings and other parties or events then more people would be drawn to the sight and company.
• Layout- The layout of the blog is nice in its colors and decorations but I don’t believe that it looks like blog. This could confuse some viewers, leaving them unsure of what type of site they are at and eventually turn them away

Opportunities

• Vendors- The blog offers a vast amount of vendors supporting the company behind the blog. This is good because customers will see these other vendors and then work with them, and vice versa.
• Advertising- I think that by having this blog the company, Brilliant Event Planning, is able to get many couples to plan their wedding through them. I think the blog allows them to be able to draw in more clients by way of the internet.
• Being Green- I noticed in only a few of their blog posts they spoke about reusing materials or donating left over centerpieces to hospitals and nursing homes. I think that with ‘being green’ currently a large trend, Brilliant Event Planning should dedicate some of their site to eco friendly possibilities.
• Making Money- From what I have seen this company is a large and successful one, with this said I feel they would be benefit from being able to sell advertising space on their blog.

Threats

• Lack of Interaction- Between email, blackberry’s and social networks it is hard these days to actually talk to someone in person. It could be that someday this blog will be used a main communication between the company and the client, causing for miscommunication and confusion.
• Isolation- Though the company is located in New York City, it does not mean that your cant have an event on a smaller budget. The way this blog looks, the organization seems to be isolating themselves to only large and over the top type weddings, which come with an over the top budget as well. With tough economic times I think it would be helpful for them to do more posts on cost saving events.
• Target- I understand that wedding plans are mainly made by the women but I think that if this blog had more articles and sections aimed towards men, that they would be more interested in making plans along with their fiancé.
• Difficult to Find- It took me a while to notice that on the side of the blog were the different categories of posts written, I thought at first they were just little advertisements and bad links. I think that the organizers of the blog should make the categories more noticeable to its viewers or they may leave the page like I had originally planned.
• Too Many Partnerships- This blog has over 25 links to other wedding blogs and vendor websites. While being in communication with others is great I think that Brilliant Event Planning should be careful because they do not want to lose too many clients to other competitors.

Brooklyn Reflection

Tuesday, September 14th, 2010 | Assignments for TLEP 4830 | No Comments

Brooklyn Reflection

The Atlantic Yards project in Brooklyn, New York has sparked a very controversial argument between the public and the developers of the project. As an outsider looking in, Atlantic Yards sounds like a wonderful idea, because it can provide a new basketball stadium, new apartments, and new businesses that may flourish. The whole thing sounds great until you realize that there are currently residents living in this 24 acre area. I understand that many people do not want to leave Brooklyn or want it to change, so for me to sit here and say yes or no to the construction of this billion dollar investment is just unfair. However, the least I can do is educate others on both sides of the story.

Looking at the Barclays Center (home to the newly named Brooklyn Nets team, and the first building constructed in the development) website, Atlantic Yards seems like an amazing, positive development. The Atlantic Yards section of the website provides insight on the positive effects of the development with facts such as the creation of over 16,000 union construction jobs, 8,000 permanent jobs, and the ability to generate billions of dollars in tax revenue for the next 30 years. According to Barclays, the development of Atlantic Yards is one of the most important developments in Brooklyn history (Barclays Center).

During the video there were many people who were for the idea of Atlantic Yards. Declared at one point, was the fact that everyone affected by the development (in terms of housing) would be offered a new apartment in one of the facilities built. It was said that renters are going to be provided with apartments that were of the same square footage, number of rooms, and tenants are going to be allowed to pay the same amount of rent as they had been paying in their previous housing establishments (PBS).

As I stated above, these opinions are the Barclays’, the developers, and the investors, not the current residents of Brooklyn. After reading a few articles and viewing websites of those opposed to the Atlantic Yards development, it is very difficult to choose a side I agree with most. I came across an article written by Nicole Gelinas, in which she talks about a local Brooklyn man, Dan Goldstein, and his wife who are fighting the city about being forced to move. With Mr. Goldstein’s luxury apartment right in the way of construction, he received a notice stating that he would be compensated $510,000 for their property. Although many people believe this is fair compensation, it is unjust in the minds of the Goldstein’s. The truth is, the amount offered to them is less than what they bought their property for and is half of what Mr. Ratner, a developer, offered them for it four years ago (Gelinas).

Others who are opposed to the current development are bringing up the amount of change that has gone underway since the construction plans were first approved in 2006. A number of residents even believe that politicians are abusing their power in order to get this development underway (Cavaliere). After researching on a few sites, I came across a chart signifying how Atlantic Yards has changed from 2006 until December of 2009. If the facts on this chart are true, then nearly everything from their project proposal to three years later has changed. The chart shows that within three years, the project manager has changed the architect, the projection of structures built, what year buildings will be constructed, and the number of jobs that will be produced. The number of jobs that are going to be produced have gone down and the projects have been extended. These extensions include the number of years it will take to build Atlantic Yards. In 2006 the team configured 10 years of construction time, in 2009 the number rose to 25 years with possible extensions (Brooklyn Speaks)!With all these changes happening within just 3 years, it is no wonder that the Brooklyn residents are so strongly against the development.

After having watched the video and reading the article over the controversial 24-acre development in Brooklyn, it has been very hard to choose a ‘correct’ side. All in all, I do not believe that everyone will be satisfied in the end. No matter the situation, if all of Atlantic Yards is built or only bits and pieces, some Brooklyn residents will always be against the change. However, others will embrace what has come and think of it as a positive outlook to the future. In my opinion the best way to develop Atlantic Yards is to do it piece by piece and slowly. A portion of the residents in Brooklyn are willing to embrace the change, nevertheless, some are still opposed to the idea. The people still opposed to the construction can be persuaded by building Atlantic Yards at a slower rate, because they will be able to see the positive changes it has brought to the community.