Downtown ASU

I remember my first day on the Downtown Campus. I was so excited (and surprised) to see how new and high-tech everything is. In fact, I was surprised by the cleanliness of the Downtown area as a whole. Thus, you can't imagine my horror when I was introduced to the Tempe campus-- seriously, would it kill you to wipe down the computer areas...just once? Or maybe pick up the old pizza boxes in the library? I guess that's what you get when you move from a private university to a public one (sorry, I don't mean to sound stuck up, but the change is dramatic). Anyway, I love the Downtown campus. It's convenient, it's pretty, and it really mirrors the vibrancy of downtown Phoenix.

As part of my internship I was able to see all of the benefits Downtown ASU offers its residents. DDO and others really put a lot of work into ensuring the Downtown campus was going to be a safe, and cool place for students. Part of their plans are, of course, Taylor place which will open up a new hall. Apparently, the dining hall is receiving a lot of traffic from people that work in the Downtown area-- thus, not leaving a lot of room for students to come, eat, and relax. So Sub-committee is wondering what to do about this problem. Their plans also include revitalizing the post office-- I guess the top floor will be offices and I forgot what the bottom floor will be. Part of the project is also the park. I am not too sure how I feel about the giant jellyfish art-piece: I fear a lot of birds will loose their lives in that net, and I'm not too sure how many people will drive/walk by that and think it is art, but the poles that are lit at night are really cool. Some people on my team (at least two permanently, and the rest help when it is needed) are completely devoted to the development of ASU. The Council and the Mayor both believe that Downtown ASU is a great way to revitalize the area, and in truth, the chapters I am reading for Urban Economics support this claim-- the establishment of education centers is one of the most effective long-term strategies to sustain economic development. It was really neat to attend the ASU meetings and learn about all of the new projects...if only the money holds out.