Syracuse University has a major appearance problem. It’s front yard to the community and to prospective students and parents is Waverley Avenue. But the university’s appearance on Waverley Avenue looks like a loading area in an industrial district and not the entrance to a major academic institution. The university has filled the front yard of Schine Student Center on Waverly right to the property line with trucks and cars belonging to the university and employees of the university even though local zoning does not permit parking in front yards.

In addition, Schine’s huge loading doors are usually wide open and loading is permitted any hour in the day unlike its neighbor Ed Smith School a mile away, which has a sign on Broad Street that reads, “No loading after 10 AM.”

Cater-corner across the street from Schine at the major intersection of Waverly with the Connective Corridor, there are five or six university ambulances always parked in the front yard. These could easily be parked in the university parking lot just to the west on Waverley that, incidentally, lacks the municipally required parking lot screening. And there are two more unscreened parking lots on the corner and opposite of Waverley and Walnut Avenues.

These unfortunate violations of proper appearance protocol are even more prominent now that the Connective Corridor and the Dick Clark Studio addition have been completed. There is absolutely no reason to wait for some future project to correct these disreputable conditions since they are basically no cost except the parking lot screening which is nominal.

David C Ashley, ‘55