Professional Grounds Management Society

Green Star Grand Award

Winner

The University of Chicago

Explore a beautiful campus in the city

Explore a beautiful campus in the city

Explore a beautiful campus in the city.

Crescat scientia; vita excolator.

Let knowledge grow from more to more, and so be human life enriched.

Cobb Gate

Founded in 1890 by the American Baptist Education Society and oil magnate John D. Rockefeller, the

University‟s land was donated by Marshall Field, owner of the legendary Chicago department store that

bore his name. Rockefeller described the donation as “the best investment I ever made.” William Rainey

Harper, the University‟s first president, envisioned a university that was “„bran splinter new,‟ yet as solid as

the ancient hills.” At the top of Cobb Gate is the Phoenix, symbolizing Chicago‟s rise from the ashes of

The Great Fire of 1871. Led by bagpipers, a processional of each class goes through this gate.

Botany PondWalk down the sidewalk between Hull Gate and Botany Pond and you may need to duck beneath a canopy of aralias that overhang the path leading to Cobb Gate and 57th Street just beyond. Those rare plants have been thriving in their niche since the beginning of the 20th century and are thought to be a legacy of John Coulter, first chair of the University‟s Botany department. The entire 211 acre campus was designated an official botanical garden in 1997.

Hull CourtThe Julie and J. Parker Hall Botanic Garden Endowment enabled the restoration of Botany Pond and the

surrounding Hull Court. The twenty botanical beds amidst campus are maintained through a combination

of in-house resources and service agreement vendors, allowing for the detail work each demands.

Kramer GardenThe gardens elevate the campus landscape character and display a variety of design influences from a prairie

plant garden to a more formal garden defined by boxwood hedges. These gardens are much appreciated by

the campus and each year draw more admirers. They need to be maintained to a high level of care and craft.

Ferdinand Kramer (1901-2002), real estate developer, devoted much of his life to projects for urban renewal

and housing integration on Chicago's South Side. His first wife, Stephanie Shambaugh Kramer (1909-

1973), designed this garden in the center of the University of Chicago Quadrangle.

Main Quadrangle Entrance GardenAlthough many of the plants on campus, including true varieties of viburnums, amelanchiers and hawthorns

originate from the late 1920s and early 1930s, hundreds of new perennials are added each year. Spring

Convocation ceremonies are held in the Quad, with 25,000 folding chairs, numerous tents, video screens and

a huge stage set against this garden splendor.

Main Quadrangle Circle GardenThe lush flora at the heart of campus owes much to the vision of legendary landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead, whose heirs helped design the original quads. Seasonal rotations include 36,000 bulbs and 3,000 forced bulbs for spring; 4,000-plus summer annuals; 750 chrysanthemums and flowering kale plants in fall and 13,600 winter greens plus a 46,400 holiday light display. Pervious concrete and Edenstone paver walkways enhance the pedestrian and environmentally friendly heart of the University.

Classics Quad - Sustaining BeautyIvy is generally allowed to cover building facades. This helps moderate temperatures inside, saving energy

costs. The University‟s tree inventory and management plan, smart irrigation, storm water

management, single-sort recycling, and other sustainable practices enhance the present use and enjoyment

of the campus without compromising future generation‟s ability to do the same.

Joe and Rika Mansueto Library“The Helmut Jahn-designed space enables students to seat themselves under a sparkling glass dome, set on a slightly angled axis as a gesture towards the nearby Henry Moore monument to Enrico Fermi and the world‟s first sustained nuclear reaction. The building incorporates a labyrinthine underground automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS) capable of storing 3.5 million volumes. The ash, oak and maple trees from the site that couldn‟t be replanted were transformed into furniture for use in the adjacent Regenstein Library.” (World Architecture News)

Woodlawn GardenWith the Oriental Institute to the left and the Chicago Theological Seminary in the background, the native

plant garden at the corner of 58th Street and Woodlawn Avenue provides an oasis in a busy area of campus.

The Booth Graduate School of Business, Frank Lloyd Wright‟s Robie House and Rockefeller Memorial

Chapel surround the property.

Midway Crossings “Light Bridges”Intended to reflect Frederick Law Olmstead‟s original concept, this project is a series of streetscape improvements at the major intersections of the Midway Plaisance, connecting north and south campus. “At night, 40-foot tall light masts evoke the storied, brilliantly-illuminated „White City‟ at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, where millions of Americans were introduced to street lights. This project stands as a model for how lighting can change our perceptions of a moribund urban zone and bring it new life.” (Blair Kamin - Chicago Tribune)

South Midway GardenThe gardens on the Midway Plaisance were developed and installed as a joint effort between the Chicago Park

District and the University. Landscape Services now oversees the maintenance of these gardens. By the

way, more than a century ago, the UC Maroons were a national football power under coach Amos Alonzo

Stagg. The original “Monsters of the Midway” won seven Big Ten Conference titles. Also, a replica of the

original Heisman Trophy, won by running back Jay Berwanger, is on display in the Gerald Ratner Athletic

Center.

Law SchoolThe Laird Bell Law Quadrangle, completed in 1959, was the vision of Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen. An evening walk by the Law School provides a breathtaking modern play on the Gothic obsession with light, with the illuminated accordion windows of the library tower projected onto Saarinen‟s reflecting pool. Gardens on the north and south will be joined by a new endowed garden to the west this fall.

Rockefeller Memorial ChapelThe final gift of John D. Rockefeller serves as hub of spiritual life and hosts major events

at The University of Chicago. The Chapel was built with a grandeur of scale and

intent, and is used today in ways which play to its strengths: speaking to the nobility of

the human capacity for awe and profound quest for meaning.

North Midway Winter Garden - Linné Statue

The enjoyment of scenery employs the mind without fatigue and yet exercises it; tranquilizes it and yet enlivens it.”

—Frederick Law Olmsted

The Service CrewHorticulturalist James Hathorn installs material in new planters at the Young Building, headquarters of

Facilities Services . Our vision: “We will work together to exceed customer expectations and become a

national model for effectiveness in enhancing the physical environment of the University.”

PerformanceJim Mulqueeny pictured mowing Stagg Field, home of soccer, softball and track field events. Anderson Field

(baseball) and the Haydon Track facility are also part of this athletic complex. Grounds staff partners with

the Department of Athletics and Physical Education and the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools to care

for 8.6 acres of athletic turf as well as the in-fill synthetic football field.

VersatilityPre-emptive anti-icing, use of snow throwers and brooms instead of plows where possible and de-icing with

treated salt improves service delivery, lessens damage and reduces overall environmental impact. Here, Pete

Thompson clears a sidewalk on south campus. In the green season he is engaged with athletic field care.

Experience

Our twenty person staff have over 140 years of combined University service. Here Ricardo Moreno push mows the west terrace garden at Ida Noyes Hall, originally designed to be a women's gymnasium and social center. Over the years, the facility has undergone modest changes and has hosted many events, large and small, for the University community. Awareness of activities, building personnel and environmental conditions is encouraged through individual responsibility for areas of campus.

Quality“Building and Maintaining Excellence.” Crishawn Cook, Lead Service Crew member, at the President‟s House.

Peer group ratings consistently place the University high in stewardship, value and service accomplishment.

Recently ranked 14th among The 50 Most Amazing College Campuses by The Best Colleges, the University has

“one of the prettiest college campuses in the United States”

Challenges - SoilLocated a quarter mile from Lake Michigan the Ice Age glaciers provided 36 feet of beautiful sand. Great for

putting your toes in, not so good for growing things. Holding moisture and nutrients at the root level is a

major battle. Keeping new trees rooted and upright is also a struggle. On the positive side, everything drains

well. Broadly defined “Chicago soil” contains bricks, concrete spoils, two by fours and anything else that was

pushed into the ground and buried over the past 200 years. As a result , we constantly battle sinkholes, wacky

pH patterns and broken aerator tines.

Expectations“The pots can never be empty.” No open space, no dead, dying or sickly looking material, here or in any of

the planters Spring, Summer, Fall, or Winter. Changeover must happen overnight, like magic! The

University boasts 85 Nobel Laureates, including 8 current faculty members, produced the first self-sustaining

nuclear chain reaction, enjoys the top business school in the country, built the world-renowned Pritzker

School of Medicine, and produces Supreme Court Justices in its Law School (even President Obama worked

there). With this comes high expectations, all day, everyday.

ConstructionLike most college campuses, construction can wreak havoc on the landscape. At UC one must also work with the City of Chicago, the Chicago Park District and private property owners to assure the protection and stewardship of the non-contiguous grounds. The University owns extensive residential and commercial properties off campus, making oversight difficult as well. Recently enacted standards help communicate contractor expectations and prohibited practices.

RestrictionsIn order to provide a more tranquil environment, pedestrian-only zones and other policies, which prohibit

and/or proscribe times for certain types of work, have been enacted. In response, work hours now begin

at 5am, regular Saturday shifts are employed and the use of electric mowers, string trimmers and other less

disruptive equipment and techniques are in place. A culture of customer

service, communication, planning, and flexibility are key components (good lighting helps too!).

Snow ManagementHow do you move a record 25 inches of snow which fell in 24 hours? In a tight urban setting, it‟s all hands on deck. The crew is pictured here at our snow dump site, an empty lot on south campus. Teamwork among Facilities Services staff: engineers, electricians, residential services folks, contractors helping haul snow for days on end and our crew holed-up two nights in campus accommodations did the trick. Alas, the city is responsible for the streets. Classes were cancelled for two days. Enough said.

Steven L. Frank

Landscape Services Supervisor

Brandon Rux, Assistant Supervisor. Service Crew: Eric Anderson, Keith Bayus, Paul Brink, Cris Cook, Todd

Channell, Josh Detzler, Micah Downs, James Hathorn, Brian Korbel, Boguslaw Lyczewski, Ricardo Moreno, Jim

Mulqueeny, Arturo Ortiz, Katina Robinson, Roland Rumsey, Pete Thompson, Mike Whitehead, Pam

Williams, Calvin Young, Dariusz Zielonka and Ruben Zalas. Richard Bumstead, Associate Director for Campus

Environment. Kevin Austin, Director of Building Services. Service Agreement Contractors: Atrium

Landscape, Bartlett Tree Experts, Brickman Group, Care of Trees, Christy Webber Landscapes and Muellermist

Irrigation.