This is what new campuses look like

It is moving towards the start of construction for the campus collection, a project that has been discussed and debated since long before most of today’s students started at NTNU. But: If you are going to start a bachelor’s at Dragvoll in the autumn, it is still unlikely that you will be able to finish your master’s together with the Siving students down at Gløshaugen.

After a sharp downscaling in 2022, signed by then Minister of Research and Higher Education Ola Borten Moe, the management framework for the project is now NOK 6.7 billion and includes an incredible 91,000 square meters of new buildings and renovations on the Gløshaugen campus. The project is divided into seven sub-projects (P0–P6), and everything is scheduled to be completed in 2030.

Mette Siri Brønmo, communications manager in the Building Owners Department in Statsbygg, explains that P0 is the first sub-project out.

– The first sod for infrastructure and landscaping will take place at the end of the year, while construction for P1 in Hesthagen and P2 on the Gløshaugen plateau will start in 2025, she says.

Relocation of students and staff will take place continuously as the building is completed.

– The first buildings in Hesthagen and on the Gløshaugen plateau are planned to be ready for use in 2027, while sub-project P5 Main building, which is the last building to be built in the NTNU campus collection, is planned to be completed in 2030, says Brønmo.

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Archaeological excavations

Before the construction work can start, archaeological excavations must be carried out in several places in and around Gløshaugen.

– Archaeological excavations are established by law and regulations, and the NTNU Science Museum is responsible for the excavations, says Brønmo in Statsbygg.

It will be dug in three areas. First up is Hesthagen, where you will start during the spring, and later excavations will be made in the area by Høgskoleveien and the main building.

– In these three areas, the county council has found traces that they believe are important to look into before the actual construction work begins, explains Brønmo.

Parking spaces are disappearing

In connection with the archaeological excavations, the large car park at Hesthagen will be closed as early as 27 May this year, but provided that no significant archaeological discoveries are made, it will be possible to reopen it for a shorter period.

– The car park will be closed for good when the construction work starts from the turn of the year 2024/2025, says Brønmo in Statsbygg.

Communications adviser for NTNU campus development, Janne S. Almhjell, says that the around 260 parking spaces that are disappearing from Hesthagen will not be replaced by new ones.

– The regulatory plans for the NTNU campus assembly that the municipality has adopted assume that no new parking spaces for private cars can be established. This is the result of the municipality’s parking policy and in line with NTNU’s environmental development plan.

Almhjell says that NTNU is revising the parking regulations to take care of special groups and make the best possible arrangements for NTNU’s other students and staff.

– We have a goal of arriving at new rules for parking during 2024. The increase in the number of students and employees at Gløshaugen will mean that more people will have to rely on public transport and cycling/walking to get to their place of work and study.

Footbridge over Høgskoleparken

A footbridge will connect the new building in Hesthagen with the Gløshaug plateau. A staircase and a lift on the outside of the building will make the footbridge accessible to the public and ensure a universal design. Bronmo in Statsbygg says that the contractor for P1 will be chosen in May.

– Then we will enter further project development and detailed design of the building and bridge. It will give us more details later in the autumn, but what we are concerned with is that the bridge should have a light architectural expression and be designed in muted colours.

She explains that the footbridge is regulated with a wiggle room, which means that existing trees and vegetation in the park must be taken into account as much as possible.

Popular walkway is closed, but replaced by new stairs

The popular walkway from the Adolf Øien building (Handelsshøyskolen) up to Gløshaugen will be closed during the construction period. Especially in the winter, when snow and ice make the other paths impassable, the heating cables make this walkway the only passable way from the west side up to the Gløshaugen plateau.

The walkway will be replaced by a new staircase NTNU will build through Høyskoleparken, a little north of Hesthagen. Almhjell from NTNU says that the new staircase will also be heated so that it can be used in the winter.

– Construction of the stairs will start in mid-April, and it will be completed in January 2025.

Backfilling in the Valley of Death: – Will shield UKA

Due to quicksand and unstable ground conditions in the area, a backfill must be created in Dødens dal. Brønmo from Statsbygg explains that this is a measure to prevent landslides in the area.

– A support fill is being carried out in Høyskoledalen as a measure for the development of the campus on the Gløshaugen plateau, especially due to the development of sub-project P6 Humam and further development under the auspices of NTNU campus development.

Statsbygg will endeavor that the work on the backfill will not affect the implementation of UKA, which every two years builds a large concert stage in Dødens dal.

– The work on filling support will continue in such a way that it avoids conflicting with the implementation of the UKE events, which we fully understand are important for the students, says Brønmo.

She says that Statsbygg is also aware that the area is an important arena for student sports.

– We have a good dialogue with NTNU and Sit in this work to ensure that student sports are also taken care of in the implementation of this basic work.

In contact with the neighbours

In November, Statsbygg organized an open meeting for neighbors and other stakeholders. Brønmo explains that Statsbygg is keen to have a dialogue with the parties concerned:

– Throughout the pre-project phase, Statsbygg has held open meetings for all stakeholders and held open office days to be available to those who are affected and want more information about the construction project. We will of course continue with this throughout the construction period.

Brønmo says that they also have a close collaboration with NTNU to deal with any inconvenience students and staff at Gløshaugen may experience during the construction period.

– In a large and extensive construction project like this, students and staff will be affected by the construction work. Measures will be initiated to reduce the disadvantages, and Statsbygg and contractors will prepare good plans for predictable and safe mobility at Gløshaugen during the construction period.

Environmental ambitions?

One of the arguments for campus collection was sustainability, and NTNU writes on its website that “NTNU Campus collection must have a low climate footprint, low energy and power requirements, increase biological diversity and improve site qualities on campus”.

There has been criticism in the media related to the fact that the environmental ambitions were downgraded in connection with the project being scaled down. However, Brønmo in Statsbygg says that they still have climate ambitions.

– Despite tight budgets, we have ambitions to be able to carry out the project better than the minimum requirements in TEK17. For the contractors who will now be selected to build the first two buildings, we have made clear demands for climate-friendly and sustainable solutions.

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