The area surrounding the Bell Tower will be receiving a landscape makeover in hope of creating more usable space on UNC’s campus and enticing more events to be hosted at the historic landmark.
A project began Monday to bring improvements to the Bell Tower, which was first built in 1931. The majority of the boxwood shrubs which used to surround the Bell Tower will be removed, although the outermost back row will remain.
The shrubs masked the base of the tower and limited the views from the area. The lawn areas that were between the walkways were also isolated and not available for use by the campus community. By removing the shrubs, UNC intends to improve visibility from the landmark and increase pedestrian safety, according to the UNC Facilities Services website.
Jill Coleman, UNC Facilities' planning landscape architect, said the landscape around the Bell Tower needed a renovation because the boxwood shrubs were in an unhealthy state, and removing them would both create more space and attract more attention to the landmark.
“We think that given the need for places for people to hold events, that it could be better utilized if we had more space," Coleman said. "We see it as, if we open it up so people can actually see that the space is there and we physically make more space, then it will serve the campus community better for more space for events and to be used on a daily basis."
Over the course of the renovations, the area around the Bell Tower will get a new lawn, and irrigation will be implemented. The brick gutters along the walkways will also be removed and subsequently filled in to prevent people from tripping over them, Coleman said.
The area will receive a temporary seeding that will green over quickly. Then, between late spring and early summer, the permanent sod will be placed down, Coleman said. Metal bollards will be placed on the edge of the area that faces South Road to prohibit vehicles from driving up to the area.
Senior Alex Kormann, a former Daily Tar Heel editor, said he was taking photographs of the Bell Tower for his internship when he first encountered the renovation taking place. He thought that while the shrubs provided a great architectural look, they prevented the area from being used often.
“With the bushes gone, the focus just becomes on the Bell Tower, how large it is, the beauty of it and gives people more of an opportunity to see it in its full glory,” Kormann said.
