The Board's decision to postpone the vote comes just weeks after the College received a $50-million gift commitment, the largest in Dartmouth history, to enable the College to move forward with the project.
The Planning Board had been scheduled to vote on the Arts Center's final design at the meeting. The College had expected the board to vote in favor of their proposal, according to John Scherding, associate director for design in the Office of Planning, Design and Construction.
During the discussion, however, Planning Board Vice Chairman William Dietrich produced several e-mails submitted by town residents and other absent Planning Board members expressing concerns that the proposal did not meet the town's long-term design goals for the downtown area, Scherding said.
The messages questioned whether the current plan makes the building adequately welcoming to the public. Many of the Hanover residents who voiced concerns at the meeting cited a planning document created in 2000, "Downtown Vision," which called on the town to develop street-level retail businesses, he said.
"I am very concerned that the current proposal is only minimally responsive to these clear and well-documented recommendations," Bill Baschnagel, a resident who also serves on two town committees, said in a June 26 e-mail to the Planning Committee given to The Dartmouth. "Given its location, massing and presentation, the VAC will set the tone and character of a key entrance to our downtown and commercial area. You should be comfortable that it will serve this function well and be something we all can point to with pride before you approve the project."
Planning Board members shared similar concerns about the VAC's appearance in the downtown context, according to James Hornig, a member of the board. Members are beginning to worry that the size of the building and its external design make the proposed structure "a little too imposing" for the downtown, he said.
"In all fairness, it's too bad we didn't recognize that earlier," Hornig said in an interview with The Dartmouth. "But it wasn't until we began to walk around the site [and] picture the landscaping [that we realized] what a big impact it would have on the area."
Planning Board Chair Judith Esmay raised concerns about the Center's need for a more "active and friendly interface with the street" in a July 5 e-mail to the Planning Board, suggesting that an existing wall in the parking lot adjacent to the Center be lowered to increase the visibility of the site's green space.
"[Downtown Vision'] encourages maintenance of the village scale and character of the Downtown," Esmay said in the e-mail. "I hope that the Board members will ask representatives of the College whether these recommendations were considered in the design of the Visual Arts Center and, if they were not, whether the College would agree to taking some time to consider them now."
Scherding said he found the board members' complaints surprising, as the design includes an open entryway and public park space in response to the guidelines of the 2000 report.
"The planned structure is interesting and dynamic," Scherding said in an interview with The Dartmouth. "There's lot's of transparency, and it's not limited to College use. It's open to the street and the community, and there are lots of places to sit for informal gathering."
The Tuesday meeting was the first time Planning Board members had been given a chance to discuss the design submitted by the College, board member Katherine Connolly said in an interview with The Dartmouth. The previous two meetings during which the VAC was discussed were devoted exclusively to the College's presentation of the design to the Planning Board, she added.
"I'm not bothered by the fact that it's taking three or four hearings it's a huge project, and it should," Connolly said, adding that she thought the project was progressing well.
While it is possible the Planning Board could reject the College's proposal, Hornig said, he thought it was unlikely to do so when the issue comes to a vote. Scherding agreed, saying he and other College representatives would "listen and respond to the Board's concerns" at the next hearing, but that he felt confident in the plan.
The Planning Board is scheduled to reconvene on July 21.
Esmay and Vice Chair William Dietrich could not be reached for comment by press time.
