Tuesday, October 19, 2010
www.msureporter.com
Minnesota State University, Mankato
Buried passageways Interview with
an Independent
Maze of tunnels connect campus buildings, student use not an option Gubernatorial candidate GRACE WEBB
staff writer
As Minnesota State Mankato students walk along campus sidewalks, few realize that there is a labyrinth of underground tunnels buried beneath them. This criss-crossing maze of tunnels, two feet underground, runs under nearly the entire campus, from Wiecking Center to the Gage Towers — nearly 7,000 feet of tunnel in all. Yet resourceful students won’t be able to head underground during cold winter months, since these tunnels are strictly for facility use. The tunnels house highpressure steam piping, high voltage streams, hot water pipes and more, all crammed within 2-3 feet-wide concrete tunnels so narrow students would need to take turns
squeezing through. At some sections of the tunnels, the corridors erode into holes that an adult would need to get onto their hands and knees to crawl through. “[There’s] a lot of hot and dangerous stuff [in there],” said Paul Corcoran, the MSU physical plant director. “[They’re] not for public walking.” The tunnels were constructed as the campus expanded. Every time a new building, such as Julia Sears, is built, the existing tunnels are expanded to that new building. In fact, a new tunnel will be coming in the spring because of the new dorm construction plans, according to Steven Ardolf, the physical plant’s chief engineer. The only areas not connected to the tunnel system are the Alumni Foundation Building,
Blakeslee Stadium and the new campus recreation building behind Gage. The main reasons for using tunnels to house the utility systems, according to MSU Planning and Construction Director Larry Kohanek, are the ease of maintenance and the dry environment. “Having utilities in tunnels is much preferred over [a] direct bury in the ground,” Kohanek said. “In tunnels, if there is a need for maintenance on a system, it can be easily done.” Kohanek said the dry environment of tunnels helps preserve utility pipes and circuits, especially in the winter when frost can cause damage. “Bottom line, the life of the systems in tunnels is much longer,” Kohanek said.
Tunnels / page 3
index
submitted photo The tunnels, which connect almost every building on campus, are there so maintenance workers can have easier access to the utility systems.
Voices......................................4 Study Break.............................6 A&E..........................................7 Sports......................................9
Tom Horner visits MSU GRACE WEBB
staff writer
Independent gubernatorial candidate Tom Horner visited Minnesota State Mankato Wednesday to receive a walking tour. Sitting in a booth at Jazzman’s, Horner was all easy charm and down-toearth openness. He answered questions liberally and even seemed interested in students’ opinions about politics. The main focus of the interview was Horner’s take on education. The Independentparty candidate said education would be one of his prime issues if he were elected governor. “We have a great opportunity [this coming year],” Horner said. “[There] will be a new president of Minnesota State University, a new governor… We need to use that to have a state-wide conversation for what we need [educationally].” Horner said he wants to take another look at the current education system and perhaps change how education is offered in Minnesota. He said it might be more reasonable to expand pre-college education to grades K-14 instead of K-12, using technical colleges as a bridge between high school and university education. He said that he would want to ensure that students who took courses at technical schools could transfer credits when moving on to a 4-year school, much like PSEO students now can take courses to fulfill general education requirements. Horner also said it is important to study how Minnesota universities function. He raised the question of whether universities try to offer too wide a range of majors, saying perhaps it would be better if certain universities became the best at one area of study,
internet photo Horner is running for governor of Minnesota as an Indepedent.
which is how many universities in Wisconsin function. “These are tough issues,” Horner said. “We need a governor who’s willing to take on all the challenges. I really want to be the governor who takes a new approach to education.” In addition, Horner stressed the importance of life-long learning, saying everyone needs some form of post-high school education, but not everyone needs the same type. He said there needs to be more room for creativity and initiative in the classroom, not the rigidity caused by No Child Left Behind. “[It] sapped all of the creativity and energy out of the schools,” Horner said of the law, adding that is important for students to be able to create their own learning system. He said schools haven’t changed much since he himself attended school almost fifty years ago, asking, “What other institution has remained that static that long?” Horner stressed that, unlike some people have been accusing, it is not teachers’ fault. “[We] have great teachers,” he said. “[It’s] the system [that]
Horner / page 3
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