After a second $500 million donation from Phil and Penny Knight, the University of Oregon will move forward with phase two of the construction of Knight Campus. The new building will be located just east of UO’s Urban Farm, and some students and staff are concerned about how the building will affect the farm’s operations, size and access to sunlight.
“The vision for building two is a 175,000-square-foot, multi-story bioengineering and applied science research building to support additional research programs and facilities,” Darin Dehle, the director of design and construction at UO, said.
With this donation the Knights, UO “will further expand its strengths in bioengineering and applied scientific research and training, creating new opportunities for additional students, adding faculty positions and funding a second building,” according to UO’s website for the project.
Related: “Knight donation funds Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact expansion”
During a meeting with UO’s architectural team and the landscape architects for the upcoming project, Urban Farm director Harper Keeler said he voiced one of the most glaring concerns about how Knight Campus will affect the Urban Farm: access to sunlight. “The new building is going up directly to our east, which will affect the morning sun,” Keeler said.
The design team compromised by making the new Knight Campus building a bit shorter than initially planned, Keeler said. Dehle said the team will reveal the final design for the building in 2022.
Access to sunlight isn’t the only way the second Knight Campus building will change the farm. Keeler said some of the trees in or around the Urban Farm may be removed during construction. “We have lots of apple trees,” he said. “We’re going to lose some soon, it looks like, based on the new construction.”
Most of the farm’s trees are fruit trees, Keeler said, which students harvest from every year. He said the Urban Farm’s two best fruit trees are located in the parking lot where the new Knight Campus will be.
“They’re not going to adjust the footprint of a half a billion dollar project for a couple of fruit trees,” he said.
Every fall, the Urban Farm makes homemade apple cider with the fruit from the gardens.
“There’s much more to a tree than the fruit that comes off it in terms of educational value and, more importantly, emotional value to the students,” Keeler said. “This orchard cannot go anywhere, and I think that is recognized by campus construction and UO.”
Georgianna Aubin, a senior majoring in art who is currently in the Urban Farm class, said she signed up for Urban Farm for the credits. But, as time went on, the class grew on her.
“I wish I could take this every term,” Aubin said. “The class is so informative, and I feel like I’ve learned so many things that I had no idea about. Now I have a garden back at my apartment.”
The class is tackling topics including environmental awareness, food deserts and the importance of eating local.
“I recently went to the Saturday Market, which normally, I would go to, but never really think about where my food comes from,” Aubin said. “It’s amazing to think that there are all these communities that are trying to be environmentally responsible with their practices.”
Urban Farm classes frequently have waitlists to get in, which Keeler said demonstrates their popularity among students.
“Because of this class, random strangers get to learn and grow together to build a community for a better, healthier environment,” Aubin said. “Urban farming in general gives the community affordable, accessible, healthy nutrient-rich food that is benefiting our planet.”
Beyond the farm-specific class, the Urban Farm serves as a destination for many academic communities and groups of the UO, such as pollination biology, soil science classes and some First-year Interest Groups. The farm also provides a refuge for the UO and Eugene communities to work on their wellness, Keeler said. He said this aspect of the farm became very evident at the start of the pandemic.
“To sit on a bench, away from other things, is really valuable,” Keeler said. “You can’t overstate how important that is, just to be able to come out and see birds and bugs and nature.”
With Knight Campus and the Urban Farm being next door neighbors, there are opportunities for the farm to be a social venue. Keeler said he expects people working at Knight Campus to hold meetings at the farm “because it’s nicer than being inside.”
Expansions beyond the gates of the Urban Farm were part of Keeler’s vision and goal for the program. “I was able to get the university certified as a bee friendly campus,” he said. This certification shines a light on the Urban Farm as a pollinator habitat site.
“We’re not adversarial with the Knight Campus,” he said. “We understand all the things that have to happen to make this project happen. At the end of the day, there’s going to be something really cool and impactful.”
