Lagoon Project should be completed by May
A former campus eyesore will soon be another scenic showplace for ‘Alabama’s Most Beautiful Campus.'
UPDATE: See The Reader Comments Section after this article for more information on the history or evolution of this project. I often add “Bonus Content” after I post a story.
By BILL RICE, JR.
Anyone who might question Troy University’s advertising claim that our campus is “Alabama’s most beautiful” might reconsider in May when the “Lagoon Project” is completed and a large area once considered an eyesore is transformed into what should be a jaw-dropping area of serene beauty.
When finished, the $8 million project will put a bow on three decades worth of beautification projects that now include almost every section of the 388-acre campus.
Dr. Jim Bookout, Senior Vice Chancellor Financial Affairs and Online Education for Troy University, is helping supervise the project. On Wednesday, Dr. Bookout provided details and the back-story of a project he said is running on schedule.
Montgomery architecture and engineering firm Goodwyn Mills Cawood is the project’s lead contractor. Heavy work started in August.
When finished, the project will significantly enlarge “Lake Lagoona,” whose waters will now span from the round-about on Veterans Memorial Drive near one of the golf course holes and curve back to the dam (“weir wall”) behind the amphitheater at Janice Hawkins Cultural Arts Park.
The Lagoon will feature three beautiful rock waterfalls, a 200-footed lighted pedestrian bridge, an anchored water feature that will shoot water high into the air and be surrounded by scenic walk-ways made of mulch and landscape material.
The area from the previous lagoon was previously woods and swamp land distinguished by a wall of kudzu and weeds infested with too much litter.
Most of the trees and vegetation were “invasive” and have been cut down or thinned out with only the “good stuff” left, according to Dr. Bookout.
Steep banks are currently being groomed by bulldozers. When water from natural and artificial sources is allowed to fill the reservoir, the effect will be of a much-deeper lagoon with clearer water. (The deepest spot in the Lagoon will be approximately six feet, said Bookout).
Like numerous other Troy University beautification projects, Bookout said the goal was to convert space that, at one time, might have been considered “ugly” and make the same spaces “aesthetically pleasing” - another area students, faculty and local residents can enjoy a picturesque stroll or scenic views from park benches.
Trojans touring the work area can already view the columns which frame the amphitheater from the front of the Lagoon and even from the Softball Stadium on Elm Street.
Project was first envisioned more than 15 years ago …
The project was first conceived in 2007 or 2008. As Bookout explained, one project often leads to another and projects often grow.
The transformation of the Janice Hawkins Cultural Art Park - which now includes an amphitheater and 200 Tera Cotta Warriors, became a reality because the University had to eliminate a small amphitheater behind the Adams Student Center when the college added onto Bibb Graves Hall (now John Lewis Hall).
Chancellor Hawkins and his wife Janice, who has played an instrumental role in many campus beautification projects, wanted students to still have an amphitheater. This was accomplished when an amphitheater was built in a kudzu-infested area across from the President’s Mansion.
Later, the Terra Cotta Warriors were added and the dormitory Rushing Hall - with its distinctive giant arch ways - provided a partial view of this new scenic area.
Renovations at the rear of the former Stewart Dining Hall, now the International Arts Center, also provided another view of this area.
Bookout said long-time board of trustee Earl Johnson, the mayor of Andalusia, told colleagues it was possible to not only improve the aesthetics of the amphitheater area but the wooded area behind the “weir wall” - a dam or walking bridge behind the amphitheater and its “reflecting pond.”
Previous projects thinned some of the wooded areas, but the area would still qualify as an eye sore on a campus with few such areas.
Funding for the final beautification process was made possible when the university changed the way it invested some of its resources, said Dr. Bookout.
The current project has been funded by proceeds from these investments as well grants, including some through the Choctawhatchee, Pea and Yellow Rivers Watershed Management Authority.
The acquisition of myriad environmental permits, acquiring environmental credits and performing environmental impact studies cost more than $1 million, said Bookout, who added that erosion and silt issues near Lake Lagoon would have required the dredging of the Lagoon anyway.
“There’s been many phases to this project,” said Bookout, speaking as he leafed through thick folders of documents spanning many years.
When finished, the waters of Lake Lagoona will drop 11 feet from the Weir Wall/dam down to the Lagoon proper with each elevation drop set off by three rock water falls.
The area where much of the dozer work is being performed was once home to the campus swimming pool, which was fed by a natural cold spring, which is still present.
The 200-foot, lighted pedestrian bridge, walking trails, water falls and the anchored “water feature” should be signatures of the new Lake Lagoona said Dr. Bookout, who noted the Lagoon was once larger than many current residents remember it.
A series of pumps, two “deep wells,” pipes and filtration systems will keep water flowing or re-circulating, he said.
At times, after heavy rainfalls, the Lagoon has filled with brown-colored water, which will probably still happen, but the water should return to a cleaner, more natural appearance more quickly due to engineering enhancements, he said.
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The Lagoon will not be stocked with fish, but some might find their way into the water anyway, he said. While people have caught large fish in the Lagoon in the past, Bookhout said he wouldn’t recommend anyone eating those fish and fishing will not be allowed.
One of the main tributaries running through the campus is the creek that borders the golf course (Persimmon Branch). Areas around the creek have also been cleared out and beautified in recent months and years.
The Lagoon Project will abut the 5-hole practice golf course. The Lagoon and golf course areas give Troy’s main campus far more scenic green spaces and water features than perhaps any other campus in our state.
This and other projects reveal how endless truck-loads of dirt, landscaping and tree-clearing can transform areas previously swamp or forrest-like into aesthetic showplaces.
If future students consider “campus beauty” when selecting a college home, Troy University should check this box. Alumni, who could become significant donors, should also take pride in how beautiful their alma mater has become.
(Also, the new Nursing Building - another new show place - should be open for students by next semester).
Bookout said Chancellor and Mrs. Hawkins deserve credit for the “tremendous vision” and leadership they provided to make so many significant campus beautification projects possible.
Goodwyn Mills Cawood, which has created the plans for many campus buildings, is once again doing a fantastic job supervising the Lagoon project, added Bookout.
By the Numbers
0 - Number of campus areas left that can be significantly transformed*
3 - Number of rock waterfalls planned for the new Lagoon
200 - feet of the planned pedestrian bridge, which will be lighted
4 - Approximate acres of the new Lagoon area
6 - Depth of Lake Lagoona at its deepest spot.
338 - Approximate acres of Troy’s main campus
3 - Roads that border the Lagoon (McKinley Drive, Veterans Memorial Drive and International Drive, plus Madison Avenue).
8 millon - in dollars, estimated price tag of the project.
Note: Dr. Bookout said the Arboretum area of the Troy Campus (near Pell Ave.) includes sizable acreage but for topography reasons this section of campus would be cost-prohibitive to develop.
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I am so excited about walking around the campus after this is complete! Lots of updates are always happening around here..
Can't wait to see the finished product. Nice article Bill.