The Hanover Planning Board approved the College's design for the proposed Visual Arts Center on Tuesday evening, following past dispute among board and community members about the design's effect on the Hanover downtown area. Board member Mike Hingston was the sole dissenter in the vote.
The planning board, which was orginally set to vote on the design on July 7, had postponed that vote following the receipt of e-mails and letters from Hanover residents who thought that the proposal did not meet the long-term design goals for the downtown area, John Scherding, associate director for design in the College's Office of Planning, Design and Construction, said in a previous interview with The Dartmouth.
On Tuesday, Scherding provided the board with the Center's design plans, explained to the board why the College had chosen several design features, and fielded questions about the design from both the board and the public.
Community members at the meeting expressed concern with a perceived lack of parking to accommodate the facility, and questioned how welcoming the building will appear to visitors.
Board chair Judith Esmay said she believed the time spent reviewing the project - Tuesday marked the fifth hearing the board has held to discuss the design - is warranted because of how "critical the Center is to the town."
Tuesday night's approval of the project comes approximately a month after the College received a $50-million gift commitment the largest in Dartmouth history to continue work on the Center.
