Instead of a traditional groundbreaking, University and N.C. Botanical Garden officials will honor the future site of its new Visitor Education Center with a ground-watering.
In keeping with the center's goal of reducing environmental impact, students will water flowers Thursday in anticipation of the building's construction, which is slated to begin this summer.
"We replaced shovels with watering cans," said Peter White, director of the Botanical Garden and a biology and ecology professor at UNC. "The amount of ground that will be disturbed in the process is as small as possible."
The event will be held at 4 p.m. at the Botanical Garden, located at 1000 Laurel Hill Road in Chapel Hill.
The building will have many environmentally sustainable features, from solar panels to a geothermal well that will heat and cool the building using the earth's temperature.
It also will be the first building in North Carolina to receive a platinum award for its environmentally friendly design.
"It's a beautiful design," White said. "This environmental sustainability so much reflects the garden's focus on environmentalism and leadership."
The gardens have been accepting donations toward the construction of the center for seven years.
Chancellor James Moeser and N.C. Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue are scheduled to attend the event.
Some of the funding for the visitor center comes from student fees.
Students on the Renewable Energy Special Projects Committee decided last summer to support the center, using funds collected from the $4-per-semester renewable energy fee that students pay.
The committee allocated these funds to the construction of the center's geothermal well.
"Not only was it good environmentally and for the community, it was also viable economically," said Jesse Prentice-Dunn, chairman of RESPC.
The N.C. Botanical Garden dates back to 1903, when UNC's first professor of botany, William Chambers Coker, planted trees and shrubbery on the campus.
Since then, the garden has expanded across the University and the state and includes areas such as Battle Park and the UNC Herbarium.
White said the new visitor center is needed because of increases in the number of visitors and staff size.
The new building will replace the Totten Center, which currently serves as a visitor center and meeting space.
"The Totten Center is bursting at the seams," White said. "We have a single classroom, which is also a gift shop and a meeting place. The new building has three classrooms, an art exhibit area, a green doctor room and an arboretum."
He said the old building will become the horticultural center as the new building becomes the educational center.
Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.
