Repository: UIHistories Project: Board of Trustees Minutes - 1946 [PAGE 5]

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BOARD OF TRUSTEES REPORT OF EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING OF JULY 1 3 , 1 9 4 4

[July 17

The Secretary presented for record the minutes of a meeting of the Executive Committee.

T h e Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois met at the University Club, in Chicago, at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 13, 1044. Present: Mr. P a r k Livingston, Chairman, General Chester R. Davis, and Mr. F r a n k A. Jensen, members of the Committee; also President A. C. Willard, Professor W . C. Huntington, Director C. S. Havens, Mr. E. Todd Wheeler, and Mr. H . E. Cunningham, Secretary. Special Building Program On motion of Mr. Jensen, the proposed Veterinary College, Animal Husbandry Laboratory, and Dairy Husbandry buildings were grouped as associated projects, to be combined as one project if this may be found necessary. On motion of Mr. Davis, the Health and Physical Education building was approved as a part of the University program, and the entire program as presented was approved for presentation to the State P o s t - W a r Planning Commission. Matters Presented by President Willard T h e Executive Committee considered the following matters presented by the President of the University. Appropriation for Airport Drainage (1) After contracts for the construction of the University of Illinois Airport were let by the Civil Aeronautics Administration it was discovered that the original drainage plans (prepared by the Civil Aeronautics Administration) constituted a violation of the drainage laws of Illinois. It, therefore, became necessary to provide three drainage outlets instead of the one originally specified. T w o of these outlets are satisfactorily provided for, but the third has become a subject of controversy. This would be the outlet for the drainage of the western area of the airport. T h e present Civil Aeronautics Administration plan of development provides for an open ditch which would have several objectionable features, viz.: 1. T h e right-of-way will be very difficult to secure, because the affected owners of the land live on and operate their farm and depend on it for a livelihood. T h e airfield development has already taken 180 acres of a total of 320 acres for which the owners were equipped with machinery and buildings to farm. T h e proposed open ditch would take from them an additional 14 acres, which would mean more than 10 per cent of their remaining 140 acres when roads and building areas are deducted. 2. T h e open ditch plan would take out of agricultural production about 12 acres of valuable crop lands. 3. T h e necessary spoil banks would become a scar on the countryside, which would be inconsistent with the appearance of the project as a whole, and thus would partially nullify the general aesthetic effect which the plans of the Civil Aeronautics Administration will produce on the field, and the University will develop, in connection with its building program. The outlet for the eastern drainage will be an open ditch, but there has been a natural ditch draining this area before, which is being straightened, deepened, and otherwise improved. T h e University has been negotiating with the Civil Aeronautics Administration in an attempt to have them provide a buried pipe channel instead of an open ditch to the west. As a compromise we agreed to one-half mile of open ditch and one-half mile of pipe channel. The Chicago regional office of the Civil Aeronautics Administration submitted to the Washington office a revised drainage design for this portion of the project, in accordance with the University's proposal. T h e Washington office has disapproved this revision because of the additional cost. It would be unfortunate to have this mile-long open ditch. Aside from the reasons cited above, there would be public disapproval and the University would be obligated to maintain the ditch.