Written by: Christel Vindenes

The Committee for location of academic disciplines delivered its final report to the Rector on December 14th, 2018. The final report: Main principles, models and solution proposals became available digitally at ntnu.no/campus development Desember 19th 2018. The hearing of the report ended on February 4th 2019.

The report is the committee's input to where professional activities and academic environments can be placed in a unified campus in Trondheim. The report suggests four alternatives for academic localization.

The comments

We received 5 comments; 33 from academic units, 7 from student organisations, 5 from union representatives and 11 from external partners and collaborators. Most of the comments name a preferred alternative or prioritizes between the location options. The academic environments respond in a lesser extent to the questions posed in the hearing letter, but comment on the questions directly and indirectly.

Recommendations

The comments provide clear recommendations, but also reflect shared opinions. Many comments express support for the report and its principles, premises and priorities. Cluster thinking and the subsidiarity principle generally receive broad support. Most of the comments support alternative C and to KAM + D along Høgskolebakken in the north. There is also support for establishing common learning areas in the central axis of "Stripa".

Concerns

Several comments point out that there is a need for further investigation and analysis of area capacity and need for expansion. As well as placing common functions; welfare services, libraries and the like. This is work in progress, and will be managed through the further development of the area concepts and according to the localization of academic disciplines.

Concerns about the possible relocation of heavy research infrastructure and lab activities are also given attention in the comments. The inputs also show concern that construction activities on the plateau will disrupt / stop experimental research.

Most people who comment on student housing on campus believe that building to maintain the core activities of the university should have priority over building for student housing.

What happens until the decision?

The decision on localization of academic disciplines will be made in the end of March. It will be the basis for NTNU and Statsbygg's work on setting the framework for the project of unifying NTNUs campus in Trondheim over the next ten years.

NTNU Campus Development is currently reviewing the comments. The main features of the feedback and how these are included in further work, together with the consultation statements, will be summed up in a report from the hearing. The committee's work and the report from the hearing are central in the treatment and decision of location.

The report from the hearing will also be made available on the project's website as soon as it is completed.