Construction Impact of the New Research Building Begins Feb. 15

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 10, 2016) — Construction is scheduled to begin next week on the University of Kentucky’s new research facility, immediately to the west of the Biomedical Biological Sciences Research Building (BBSRB) along Virginia Avenue. In November 2015, Parking and Transportation Services (PTS) shared an overview of the construction and its impact on campus parking. PTS continues to work closely with Capital Projects Management Division to minimize the impact of this project on the campus community.  

Construction of this facility will impact parking starting at the close of business on Friday, Feb. 12, 2016, and will result in shifting reserved (E+) parking west toward Press Avenue into the remaining Press Avenue North surface parking lot, relocating disabled accessible parking into several newly designated accessible parking areas, and ultimately displacing approximately 200 employee (E) parking spaces. Sufficient capacity exists in a variety of campus parking areas to accommodate those impacted employees. Last month, PTS updated the campus community on a variety of alternative parking and multimodal options. As the start of the project draws near, this communication serves as a reminder of the many available choices. Employees are encouraged to familiarize themselves with alternative parking and multimodal options this week to find one that best meets their needs.

Employee (E) Parking Alternatives:

With the transition of the surface parking between Press Avenue and BBSRB from Employee (E) to E+ Reserved parking, employee parking demand will likely shift to the Press Avenue Garage (PS #6), which will result in the garage reaching capacity earlier in the morning. To aid with the anticipated increase in demand at the Press Avenue Garage, PTS installed a digital space counter sign at the garage’s entrance; this sign will allow drivers to avoid searching for space in the garage if the structure is full.

Employees with valid E permits are authorized to park in any campus employee (E) parking areas, which include the Commonwealth Stadium parking lots. Employees who currently park in the Press Avenue Area may find that some of the options listed below are just as fast and convenient as their current parking accommodations.

Approaching campus from the south:

• The Orange Lot at Commonwealth Stadium, located at the corner of University and Alumni Drives. The Orange Lot is served by the Purple (UK HealthCare) Route, which provides frequent access to the Health Sciences Research Building (HSRB) and the new Hospital (Pavilion A) with interior building connectivity to the Kentucky Clinic, College of Pharmacy and BBSRB.
• The Blue and Red Lots at Commonwealth Stadium, located across University Drive from the Orange Lot and along the south side of Commonwealth Stadium. The Blue and Red Lots are served by the campus Blue and White bus routes which provide convenient access to and from the Kentucky Clinic and College of Pharmacy bus stops.

Approaching campus from the north:

These areas listed below are a modest 6-10 minute walk from the Virginia Avenue corridor, as well as a short ride using the campus Blue and White bus routes from the Taylor/Dickey bus stop.

• The Scott Street Lot, located off Scott Street, behind the Lexington Fire Department Station #6.
• The Taylor/Dickey Lot, located off Scott Street behind Taylor Education and Dickey Hall.
• The Reynolds Lot, located off Scott Street, adjacent to Reynolds Warehouse #1.
• The South Limestone Garage (PS #5), located on South Limestone next to Kennedy’s Wildcat Den, with access on both South Upper and South Limestone Streets.

Virginia Avenue Disabled Accessible Parking Alternatives:

• In anticipation of this construction, PTS transitioned the Huguelet Drive Reserved Lot to disabled accessible parking in August 2015, resulting in a net increase in disabled accessible parking in the area.
• Last week, PTS added four disabled accessible parking spaces in the Leader Avenue Lot, adjacent to the College of Medicine Building.
• The Press Avenue Garage has disabled accessible parking spaces with convenient shuttle access to the Kentucky Clinic via the Pink Route.
• The Orange Lot has disabled accessible parking spaces with shuttle service provided by the Purple (UK HealthCare) Route.

BBSRB E+ Reserved Parking Accommodations:  Employees with BBSRB E+ permits will shift slightly to the west into what remains of the adjacent Press Avenue North Lot, which will change from an employee (E) lot to E+ designation. At that time, all remaining surface UK-controlled parking between Press Avenue and BBSRB will be reserved for E+ permit holders. This includes the spaces on BBSRB Drive. The new BBSRB E+ Lot will be controlled for valid BBSRB E+ permits from 5 a.m. until 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Long-Term Solutions:  The university has been working hard over the past several months with Sasaki and Associates to develop a comprehensive Transportation Master Plan (TMP) focused on enhancing mobility to, from and around campus; the TMP provides a framework, which will guide campus mobility into the future. The final recommendations from Sasaki call for investments in enhancing alternative commuting options while also adding additional parking resources. After adding nearly 1,000 new spaces in time for the 2015-2016 school year and implementing the BluPass program, under which UK students and employees ride all Lextran routes free of charge, PTS is currently developing plans that will add several hundred new spaces to the campus for the start of next academic year. Moreover, the university continues to explore alternatives that could allow further expansion of parking, in addition to options to ensure that campus remains accessible to all members of the campus community.

A map of the specific parking areas and bus stops outlined here may be found below. Additionally, a campus parking map can be found at www.uky.edu/pts/parking-info_parking-maps.

MEDIA CONTACT: Blair Hoover, 859-257-6398; blair.hoover@uky.edu