The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) campus was founded in 1970 on 800 acres of suburban land north of Dallas. Since its beginning, the university has served as a commuter campus. Recent changes in the University's mission have required a change in the direction and scope of the original Master Plan.

The scope of the new Master Plan was to prepare visionary guidelines for development and to project the needs of the campus as it changes from a graduate level institution to a full four-year university. Currently, the campus has a full time equivalent (FTE) student population of 7,500. Within the next twenty years the FTE student population is projected to increase to over 20,000. The master plan has been designed to provide a broad framework within which the expansion of facilities could occur while creating a more unified campus identity.

Working with the University Staff, the planning team established the following six major concepts for the Campus, which, when implemented, will provide the guideline or "back bone" for future development. These concepts were:

Create a Flexible Framework for Growth · The original Master Plan for the Campus was developed over twenty years ago and took a highly structured view of the development of the Campus. Over time, as educational program and facilities needs have changed, the original Master Plan has proven to be too inflexible to serve as a viable decision making tool.

The new Master Plan was designed to propose both an "attitude" toward the growth and development of the Campus and a 'framework" or mechanism with which to make decisions as growth occurs. To this end, the Master Plan has established strong circulation and open space systems and provided for both programmed and unprogrammed building sites, thus allowing maximum flexibility to meet future building needs while still creating a strong sense of identity and functionality for the Campus.

Finally, the implementation of the Master Plan was designed to be phased over the twenty-year horizon of growth projected by the University.

Reinforce the Identifiable Core · The identifiable core of the Campus will be reinforced through the integrated design of new buildings and their associated landscape. Site planning along major Campus circulation malls will adhere to setback standards and building height limitations. Architectural designs will respond to the need to develop a strong sense of character for the Campus; express the image and identity of the Campus; and offer their own individual identity.

Reinforce the Campus Environment · A clearly identifiable open space environment will be introduced at the Campus through the creation of new pedestrian malls, a campus ring road / pedestrian circulation system and the preservation and enhancement of Cottonwood Creek as a key open space amenity as it traverses the Campus.

Create Major Identity Statements · Currently, the Campus has no identifiable "front door", and most of the vehicular traffic entering the Campus must do so through a residential neighborhood. The Master Plan proposed closing the residential neighborhood entry and established new major Campus entries along the southern and the western boundaries.

Establish Clear Pedestrian Circulation · A clear hierarchy of pedestrian circulation routes within the Campus will be established and the existing ones reinforced. These routes will clearly delineate connections within the Campus and the surrounding community.

Create a Permanent Endowment Opportunity · The University currently owns a large amount of land, which provides endowment funds for various Campus educational programs. The Master Plan was designed to enhance the economic development potential of these lands, while integrating them into the overall framework of the Campus. Proposed plans include a mixed-use development of office and retail uses along the southern boundary of the campus, helping to create a "common ground" between campus and community.

The Master Plan is the first major planning document to be produced subsequent to the creation of the campus in 1970. As such, it represents a major departure from the original campus plan that has guided development over the past twenty years and is intended to shepherd in a new era of growth and change.

The plan has been designed to allow a maximum amount of program flexibility while presenting a strong design vision for the campus.

Finally, the plan was prepared through an interactive planning process which included representatives of the adjacent residential neighborhoods, the City of Richardson, the City of Piano, and a campus Master Planning committee established solely for the purpose of aiding in the preparation of this plan.

As a part of the multi-disciplinary project team, the Landscape Architect provided Master Planning and landscape architectural services for the project.