The University of North Florida board of trustees unanimously approved the university’s 10-year campus master plan at its meeting Nov. 17 at the Adam W. Herbert University Center.
The plan says its mission is to “provide a bold, flexible and innovative roadmap for the next decade of physical improvements on campus that implements the vision of the Strategic Plan. This plan will align efforts campus-wide, optimize resources, elevate the campus experience for all, integrate with the natural environment and engage the broader community.”
“This is the roadmap for your next 10 years,” said Angela Coullias, senior campus planner for DLR Group, the consulting firm that developed the plan.
Founded in Omaha in 1966, DLR has grown to 30 offices in the U.S., the Middle East and Shanghai.
The plan is based on projected enrollment of nearly 26,000 students in 2034-35. In fall 2024, the most recent year enrollment data is available, 16,321 students were enrolled at UNF.
The plan proposes a mixed-use research building near the existing amphitheater with a new Innovation District on the southern edge of the 1,300-acre campus. The new district would be public-facing and could include community attractions such as a museum, hotel, retail or restaurant space and local businesses to draw the community to the campus.
Also in the plan are new residence halls that will allow up to 25% of future students to live on campus. A Greek housing village for fraternities and sororities is proposed along Osprey Ridge Road. Currently, about 23% of students live on the campus.
The athletics facilities are proposed to be renovated and new facilities constructed with the long-term goal to establish a football program.
Proposed new boardwalks and better way-finding will help ensure that the campus remains pedestrian-focused as it becomes more dense, the plan states.
A roundabout will be added to UNF Drive between Lot 2 and Lot 3 to improve traffic flow based on the campus’s future “densification,” Coullias said.
She said the plan is approved by all relevant state and local government regulatory agencies, including the city of Jacksonville Planning, Public Works and Transportation departments; the state Environmental Protection and Transportation departments; the Florida State Clearinghouse; Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission; St. Johns River Water Management District; Northeast Regional Planning Council; and North Florida Regional Transportation Planning Organization.
Since UNF opened more than 50 years ago, some structures on the campus qualify for historic designation, so the plan is also approved by the Department of State Division of Historical Resources, Coullias said.
UNF said the plan was developed over a two-year period with input from faculty and students and meets the requirements of the State University System. Comments from government agencies and the public are incorporated into the final report that will be presented to the trustees.