Initial Planning Report
The original west campus planning and development report, known as the Erickson-Massey Development Plan, 1969 for the University of Lethbridge was prepared for submission to the Board of Governors in late March, 1969. Its intended purpose was to present a long-range development plan for the University, together with all supporting data.
It was a rigourous but formal plan that assessed the academic, institutional goals and our unique site and environment as key determinants of the plan.
Without doubt, the design and construction of the University of Lethbridge is the crowning achievement of Lethbridge Modern. It is a key work in the career of Canada's most esteemed architect of the 20th century, Arthur Erickson of Vancouver. Published around the world, it is also the most famous Alberta building designed in the 1960s, and its ideas have shaped many subsequent university and public buildings. Just as important, the building is a testament to the fresh forward thinking of Lethbridge's civic leaders and university officials, who risked the unusual to ensure their new campus had the best possible design. Future generations will appreciate that what is now called University Hall is a very important building to the history of Canadian architecture.
Lethbridge Modern, Southern Alberta Art Gallery, 2002
The report initially considers the fundamental prototypes of University design, past and present, investigates appropriate planning models in response to the academic vision of the institution, the impressive site and overall building program, in order to convey the kind of place (or destination) the University of Lethbridge might become.
