On Thursday, Oct. 16, Campus Planning hosted a series of public sessions in Neilson Library to update the Smith community on the ongoing Campus Use Plan (CUP), a multi-stage initiative that will guide the college’s future development of its built environment and public spaces.
In December 2024, Campus Planning began a 10-month campus study with design firm Sasaki and is now entering its third and final phase. The most recent public updates prior to Thursday’s sessions took place in May, in which planners shared their progress and invited feedback from students, faculty and staff.
“As we’re embarking on this campus use plan, we’ve had three different phases of work, and we’ve just entered into the third phase,” one planner said. “We’ve been analyzing every single comment, all of (your) markings, and that’s been embedded in ways we’ve been thinking about the campus as we’ve been projecting forward for the next 20 years.”
The team noted they received over 1,300 responses through MyCampus Survey early this year, an interactive tool that allowed members of the community to map their campus experiences. They also highlighted a range of outreach efforts, including over 25 listening sessions, multiple Board of Trustees meetings and campus tours.
Throughout the session, planners discussed strategies for reimagining Smith’s campus environment. “We see existing conditions of Smith College existing in these very distinct zones,” one planner said. The CUP aims to better connect these areas, creating stronger physical and social connections between different parts of campus.
Key goals include improving accessibility by reconfiguring physical barriers across indoor and outdoor areas, renovating the college’s housing system and increasing the number of “third spaces,” communal spaces that are neither academic nor residential.
Plans are also underway to repurpose Young Library to support new social infrastructure for students and faculty, with potential additions such as collaborative workspaces and studios.
One of the CUP’s more ambitious proposals is a loop that would reconnect campus and cross the Mill River. “[We want to] have a campus loop that would actually be a pedestrian-accessible loop that would connect the campus districts and neighborhoods together, with ways that would bridge across Mill River,” a planner said.
A Northampton resident raised a question about a former access point to the river from Paradise Road. Planners confirmed its reinstallation would begin before the end of 2025.
Dining services emerged as a key component in the CUP. “One [priority is] creating a sustainable and community-building dining model,” the planner said, noting the significant amount of feedback they received. The team is exploring how to better utilize currently unused spaces, such as decommissioned kitchens and dining rooms within residence houses, to support community needs.
Student Ziqi Zhen ’26 expressed concern about how some of these proposed changes might affect workers and the broader campus community. “I’m deeply concerned about dining halls closing,” she said. “That also affects the dining workers themselves.”
One attendee asked how the CUP relates to the Landscape Master Plan, a similar project completed in 2021, which outlined various ideas to improve the campus’ built environment. “It’s an incredible document,” said a Campus Planning representative, citing Davis Meadow as one example of successful implementation, and potential inspiration in restoring Comstock House lawn, recently excavated for geothermal work.
While members of the community appreciated the opportunity to participate in the CUP’s process, some students expressed skepticism on how their input would be carried forward.
“As someone who’s interested in the built environment and what it means for people…what really matters is what we are going to achieve with the buildings and spaces,” said Uchechi Anaba ’27. “We’ll have these talks, and then after this ends, what’s going to happen to everything we just said?”
During the session, Campus Planning highlighted the dynamic nature of the CUP. “This is not a static document or process. This lives on past what we’ve been doing,” they said. “In true planning fashion, it needs to change according to the times and needs of the people.”
Smith students, faculty, staff, and community members are encouraged to reach out to campususeplan@smith.edu for feedback and questions.
