The Daily Bruin carries a story today about possibleconstruction of an archery range on campus as a component of a large donation which is raising some ecology concerns. Apparently, the area currently contains California native plants and is usedin some coursework and has raised some faculty objections. As pressures for fundraising ramp up –reflective of the larger university/state budget situation – these kinds of conflictsover university property and land use seem to keep cropping up. Earlier - and still-current - examples involvethe hotel/conference center project and the proposed sale of the JapaneseGarden.
Excerpt:
Just behind ParkingStructure 11 and the Hitch residential complex – on the northwest tip ofcampus – is a four-acre patch of land. Knownas Sage Hill, UCLA geographers have designated the area as the only functioningecosystem of native Californian plants and animals on campus. Professors takestudents on official field trips to the area at least once a quarter, and usethe land to teach students how to take soil samples and biological inventories… Discussions are currently underway regardingthe building of an archery range “somewhere along Veteran Avenue,” said BradErickson, executive director of UCLA Campus Service Enterprises. He added thatthese plans are still in a conceptual stage, and no formal planning process hasbegun. University spokesman Phil Hamptonalso confirmed that the university is considering utilizing donated funds toprovide what he described as much-needed recreational space on the northwestside of campus…
The full Daily Bruin article is at http://www.dailybruin.com/index.php/article/2012/01/sage_hill_site_facing_pressure
Back in 1930, we had plenty of space for archery on campus. But in our modern circumstances - with much less open space - one is reminded ofthe old Twilight Zone episode – “I Shot an Arrow in the Air.” As it turned out in that story, where it came down provedunfortunate:
Part 1:
Part 2:
Part 3:
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