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Dear Infrastructure and Sustainability team, 

I hope this letter finds you well and that you’re settling into the new semester and enjoying the opportunities to see colleagues and students on campus.

I want to take a moment to highlight a significant campus priority that’s been in the news a lot this semester, the annexation of ɫ�����ֱ�� South. For those unfamiliar with the project, ɫ�����ֱ�� South is a 308-acre parcel of land on the southeast edge of the city that the university bought in 1996 to help ensure we could continue to meet our campus mission well into the future. In 2017 the city requested ɫ�����ֱ�� submit an annexation application, which allows connection to city utilities. On Sept. 21, ɫ�����ֱ�� City Council approved annexation of ɫ�����ֱ�� South by a 6-1 vote.

Approval of this annexation was a huge milestone for both the city and the university that encompasses a number of community benefits that align with our shared values. In addition to flood protection for downstream ɫ�����ֱ�� residents and the preservation of new permanent open space, the agreement gives the university the ability to build roughly 1,100 new housing units for students, faculty and staff to help more of our folks live where they work and study. We will also have the ability to build some nonresidential spaces to meet other campus needs. And we’ll incorporate a multimodal transportation hub to ensure sustainable mobility between our campuses.

While our own detailed planning for the site remains a few years out, the approval of the annexation was years in the making and marks a significant step forward for us. In addition to the many campus colleagues past and present who played leading roles, there are many people in Infrastructure and Sustainability who deserve major kudos for their efforts in helping to bring the annexation to fruition. They include Director of Strategic Initiatives Ida Mae Isaac; Executive Director of Real Estate Services Rebecca Fell; Campus Landscape Architect Richelle Reilly;  Civil Engineer Jonathan Akins; and Assistant Director and Spokesperson Joshua Lindenstein. The expertise and involvement from each of them was vital over the course of several years, and I know there were many more of you who played roles at one time or another. This is just the beginning. Going forward, Infrastructure and Sustainability will play a leading role for the university as plans for ɫ�����ֱ�� South take shape. I’m excited for what’s to come and look forward to working with you and many of our partners across the campus and the ɫ�����ֱ�� community as this effort evolves. 

Vaccination requirement 

I also want to take this opportunity to thank all of you for meeting the campus’s call to complete the university’s vaccination requirement. I can proudly say that all active Infrastructure and Sustainability employees have met the requirement to report their vaccination status. Thank you so much for doing your part to keep our campus safe and enable university leaders to make decisions based on robust data about our campus community. This organization continually rises to the occasion in support of our university, and I couldn’t be more proud to work with you.

Campus Culture Survey

Finally, employee engagement, inclusion, affinity and professional development have been and continue to be priorities for I&S. I want to let you know that during the week of Oct. 18, you will be receiving an email asking you to participate in the Campus Culture Survey. This is a secure, anonymous survey. Please take the time to take the survey and provide your honest responses. Results from this survey will be used to better understand our existing campus culture and to identify both strengths and areas of concern in order to make recommendations for creating and sustaining a just, equitable and inclusive culture at ɫ�����ֱ��.

With gratitude for all you do,

David Kang, vice chancellor for infrastructure and sustainability