The land neighboring the south side of Gerlinger Hall and across from McArthur Court has been home to Pioneer Cemetery since 1873. The cemetery was the subject of controversy for many years as former University administrators looked to build on the property, while the families of those buried there advocated for its preservation.
| Timeline of development 1914 — The Board of Regents employs Ellis Lawrence to establish the first University campus plan. 1924 — In a biennial report to the governor, the president of the Board of Regents warns that the University’s need for more land may soon result in it “being forced to buy and destroy brick blocks near the campus in order to find sites for necessary buildings,” which was being done at universities in the Midwest. 1930s — The Public Works Administration begins funding buildings, including Esslinger Hall. 1960s — Gerlinger Annex, Autzen Stadium and residence hall construction begins; plans are formulated for Pioneer Cemetery; the University begins purchasing property in the East Campus neighborhood. 1972 — The Fairmount Neighborhood Association is formed. 1973 — The Oregon Experiment is finalized. 1976 — The city requests neighborhood refinement plans; Fairmount neighbors begins discussion with the University. 1982 — The 1982 Fairmount/University of Oregon Special Area Study is finalized and approved by the city. 1991 — The Long Range Campus Development Plan is drafted. 2002 — Talks concerning an update to the 1982 plan begin between the Fairmount neighbors and the University. 2004 — Eugene City Council unanimously approves the updated East Campus plan. 2005 — Updates to the Long Range Campus Development Plan are expected to be complete; the Williams’ Bakery site is purchased. |
University Planning Director and Architect Chris Ramey said the University’s quest for cemetery ownership went all the way to the state Supreme Court, which ruled that the University did have a right to buy the cemetery, exhume the graves and develop on the land.
The University’s efforts at relocating the cemetery were met with such great opposition that Ramey said former University President Robert Clark made a promise when taking office that the University would leave the cemetery forever untouched.
Ramey said Clark’s promise came after several years of conflict between University officials and area residents regarding a January 1963 plan that suggested building elevated structures over the cemetery to allow for
development without disturbing the
interred remains.
The plan, drafted by urban designer Lawrence Lackey and his associates, aimed to build structures over the existing grave sites to preserve the cemetery while still allowing for University development.
Ramey was amused that someone had actually been paid money to draft such an idea and said the plan was scratched before ever gaining momentum.
Lackey’s plan focused specifically on detailing the University’s future development. Exact projects were mapped out and decided on years in advance, an idea that proved not to work, something Ramey said is
exemplified in Lackey’s plans for
the cemetery.
“Faculty said ‘there had to be a
better way,’” Ramey said.
The failing of the Pioneer Cemetery development plan led to the
formation of an entirely new outlook on campus planning, detailed in the
Oregon Experiment of 1973.
The Oregon Experiment was a collaborative effort between the University and the Center for Environmental Structure. The plan calls for an ongoing planning process that steers away from specifically mapping out building and development plans for the future.
University Vice President for Administration Dan Williams said even if Clark had not made the promise that he did, the University is more
interested in buying new land for
development than financing the
purchase and relocation of a more than 125-year-old cemetery.
Though the proximity of the cemetery makes it a valuable piece of land to the University, Williams said the cost of buying and moving the cemetery outweighs the benefits that could come from it.
“The cost-benefit financially isn’t there,” Williams said.
