Goldsworth Valley gazebo coming down, to be rebuilt in 2016

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—The ravages of time and weather have taken their toll on a popular Western Michigan University outdoor gathering spot, but plans are already underway for a 2016 replacement of the Goldsworth Valley gazebo.

The gazebo, in place for more than four decades, was scheduled for some needed refurbishment this summer, says David Dakin, director of campus facility planning. What crews discovered, however, was that the structure itself was no longer safe and needs replacement.

The refurbishment on the popular spot near Goldsworth Valley Pond was originally set to coincide with stormwater work being done around the pond's edges. That work is meant to slow down the rate at which stormwater enters the pond so the phosphorous content can be reduced and the health of the pond improved.

The gazebo will come down sometime this month, and the combination of demolition work and stormwater improvements will necessitate moving the pond's resident swans.

"We'll be temporarily moving the swans," Dakin says. "Moving them will be stressful in the short term, but we know having people working in their space will be even more stressful to the swans in the long term."

Dakin says a replacement gazebo will be erected on the same Goldsworth Valley Pond site next summer and be ready for use with the start of the fall 2016 semester. The swans will be moved back to the pond then, as well.

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