An Open Letter to Michigan State University

To Whom It May Concern:

As a graduate of Michigan State University, I urge the design team for the new Facility for Rare Isotope Beams facility to SAVE THE TREES!

Dr. Don Dickman, Professor Emeritus of the MSU Department of Forestry, writes:

YOUR VOICE ON A SERIOUS MATTER IS NEEDED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. As you may know, MSU and the Cyclotron have been awarded a contract by US/DOE to built the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB). Within the least few days we have learned some of the details. To make room for the large industrial/warehouse style buildings that are needed for FRIB, the beautiful Bogue Street boulevard that runs north-south in front of the Wharton Center for Performing Arts will be bulldozed and the venerable oak trees (~150 years old) that grace it will be felled. These trees have stood there since the very beginning of the campus. Ironically, Bogue Street is named for the first Chair of the Department of Forestry at MSU when the department was created in 1902. Its destruction would be a slap in the face for MSU Forestry! Plans also in the works show that the attractive traffic circle at Shaw and Bogue Streets will be eliminated, along with the ancient oak and walnut trees that occupy it. In its place will be more asphalt. Apparently no creative thought given to how the natural beauty of this area of campus could be preserved while still allowing the necessary construction.

In the last few days a group has been formed of concerned faculty and staff to head off this travesty. The current plans could be altered to save the trees and maybe even Bogue Street. YOU CAN HELP! The concerns of alumni must be heard. Please write an email message to Jeff Kacos, Head of Campus Planning & Administration (kacos@cpa.msu.edu) and Konrad Gelbke, Director of the Cyclotron (gelbke@nscl.msu.edu) and express your opposition to the destruction of the trees.

MSU is renowned for the beauty of its campus. It's also renowned for its scientific work. But the two NEED NOT BE AT ODDS! This could be a win-win situation if the FRIB plans were altered to save the trees. Please help us out.

MSU graduates, knitters, and Twitter-friends, help me get the word out!

I have already emailed Jeff Kacos, Head of Campus Planning & Administration (kacos@cpa.msu.edu) and Konrad Gelbke, Director of the Cyclotron (gelbke@nscl.msu.edu). Please add your voices to mine!

Show the world that MSU can be a model for tree-friendly construction. Cutting-edge research does not have to mean cutting down the trees!