Alumni Association Hosts UCF Downtown Forum
By Angie Lewis, ’03
Fred Kittinger, ’80, associate vice president for University Relations and director of state and local government affairs for UCF, spoke with fellow Knights about the continued plans for the UCF Downtown project during an open forum held at the UCF Executive Development Center on May 11.
Kittinger, who’s a member of the project’s steering committee and executive council, among other teams, began the presentation with a video:
Inspired by a visit to the downtown Phoenix campus of the nation’s largest university, Arizona State, UCF President John Hitt envisioned a similar downtown presence for the nation’s second-largest university.
Kittinger cited that 75,000 people work and 15,000 people live in downtown Orlando. He also mentioned Central Florida’s addition of the SunRail commuter train and planned I-4 expansion. “When people ask, why downtown Orlando? I say, why not downtown Orlando?” he said.
The new campus will include countless opportunities for students within a 15-minute walk radius, much like on the main campus. In six to eight years, Kittinger said it will host 10,000-13,000 students. He added that 60 percent of colleges and universities in the U.S. have less than 13,000 students, and reinforced that UCF Downtown will be a full campus, not a satellite or branch campus.
As part of the project, America’s Leading Partnership University will also partner with Valencia College, helping to make it more accessible — especially to Parramore residents and their children, who will see a new K-8 school built in their neighborhood in the next few years.
Kittinger’s colleague Paul Lartonoix, assistant vice provost at UCF, explained more about the project’s committees and how the 170 members cross-collaborate. He also discussed the academic programs proposed for the campus, including those in the School of Visuals Art and Design, Nicholson School of Communication and College of Health and Public Affairs. With the current timeline, he said the plan is to begin building in July 2016, and open in July 2017. (All of this, of course, is dependent on funding.)
Former UCF Student Government Association President Mike Kilbride, ’12, talked about the look and feel of the downtown campus, showing examples with photos of the Institute of Design at Stanford and other functionally diverse university spaces.
The trio then fielded questions from alumni, who asked whether or not transportation will be provided between the main campus and downtown (it will), if parking will be an issue (it won’t), and how they’re addressing safety (UCF Police, the Orlando Police Department and Valencia Police are working together to ensure students’ safety).
Learn more about the plans for UCF Downtown.
