The University’s Outdoor Program is nearing completion of a $500,000 facelift with the renovation of their “barn.”
The remodel, which will be completed in time for the academic year, was paid for by the Student Building Fee and various grants including the Student Sustainability Fund and provided the program with not only ample open space but “green” features and technology. The barn is located on the northeast corner of University Street and 18th Avenue.
The half-million-dollar project that began in December and closed the barn for more than a month this spring is mostly complete and the program again serving both University students who are automatically part of the co-op, and community members who must pay a small annual fee of $12-$15 to rent equipment and participate in trips.
Despite offering a myriad of recreational supplies that include 15-foot rafts, kayaks, snowboard gear and camping equipment, the program, which was created in 1967, is mostly known for its Bike Loan Program that only began in 2008. With the barn’s expansion and the closing of Oregon River Sports, however, the program’s reputation has risen — especially with students.
“It’s on the way to becoming quite the Mecca for the outdoor oriented, which is perfect for such an outdoor-oriented school,” University senior Nicholas Baker said.
The praise for the barn’s renovation is well deserved as the program has added a new storefront and area for accelerated customer service, a small office, a covered storage area for rafting equipment and bicycles, a covered workspace and drive-through loading zone.
The aforementioned “green” features allow the wide open space to usher in large amounts of natural light, and outside, the surrounding lawn has been replaced with paving blocks that allow water to percolate into the ground and be reused. Most notably, the barn has been retrofitted with a state-of-the-art rainwater catchment system with a 3,000-gallon capacity to provides clean, pressurized water for the facility’s irrigation, toilets and washing machine.
Continuing with the focus on sustainable practices, the Outdoor Program has gone paperless as the digital era has made e-mails the medium of choice for the group’s quarterly newsletters. The program’s online presence is also particularly significant because their website allows one to view upcoming trips that are available to members of the co-op exclusively for extremely affordable costs.
Dave Villalobos, the Trip Facility Manager at the Outdoor Program, is excited about the great strides that the organization has made recently and is proud of how the program raised the money through hard work and determination, not federal stimulus money or Nike contributions. In a time of economic downturn especially, Villalobos said, it’s frustrating when things are assumed about your funding.
With their newly-christened facility operating in full swing this summer, excitement and support for the program is at an all-time high, even amongst its employees.
“All the great things about the program have just been made easier,” Vehicle Coordinator and University senior Sam Appelbaum said.
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