Tarleton State University students and Stephenville residents have been very vocal about Tarleton’s proposed plan to build a parking lot on top of a historic pecan tree orchard between the West End Cemetery and the Tarleton baseball field on Washington Street. Amid a barrage of outrage on social media following a recent JTAC News article, senior agriculture education major Preston Leach started an online petition to preserve the trees.

“I feel that there isn’t much of a student’s voice,” Leach said. “As Tarleton grows each year, I think we should have a say in construction and other issues. The pecan orchard is a huge part of history to Tarleton and I don’t want that taken away.”

As of 10:45 a.m., the petition had 807 supporters in only five days. Many of the people who signed the petition also left comments about how they felt about the trees possibly being cut down.

Leach said he is amazed by the amount of responses he received on the petition and hopes that the Tarleton administration will accept the petition and understand that there are people who are concerned about this issue.

“Tarleton State University is well known for the tradition and history,” Leach said. “I want current and future students to understand that this is what we stand by.”

University Police Chief Matt Welch is concerned about the 300 more cars that will be moving to west side of campus because Traditions North residents will be moving from Bosque Crossing Apartments to their own residential hall. Welch said that these students will most likely be parking in the Memorial Stadium parking lot.

When the construction for the Applied Science building starts, lot P30 will be closed, but no date has been set for the closure, Welch said.

“Usually about 500-800 students graduate in December and we only pick up about 100-200 new students for the spring, so we’ll just have to see how many are living on campus and how it affects parking,” Welch said.

Manon Shockey, Agriculture and Consumer Sciences Instructor and Horticulture Center Manager, thinks the area should be invested into by adding picnic tables, a walking path and a gazebo.

“We need to care for our history and traditions in order to invest in the future of Tarleton State University,” Shockey said.

Shockey points to the Campus Development Plan presented by Broaddus Planning in May 2014, which included ideas for expansion and upcoming construction projects such as the Memorial Stadium renovation and a new aquatics center.

Broaddus Planning mapped out “views and focal landscapes” and considered the area with the pecan trees to be a “focal landscape” with a “positive view” that should be retained and protected.

According the Broaddus Planning’s website, the development plan for Tarleton is “to think strategically about the coming years in how best to allocate limited funding to maximize the benefits to students, faculty and staff.”

Dr. Kyle McGregor, Vice President for Advancement and External Relations said the university is still exploring options for the proposed parking lot. According to McGregor, if the area with the pecan trees is chosen, the university plans to preserve as many trees as they practically can.

“The university is aware of the issued that have been raised and remains open to viable alternatives. However, the university has a responsibility to remain focused on our students and provide basic and quality services such as parking,” McGregor said. “The university constantly works to preserve and extend the heritage and natural beauty of the campus.”

According to Leach, the petition to save the pecan trees was handed over to Tarleton yesterday, when it was delivered to the Division of Student Life, which oversees parking operations.

“We are taking the voices who signed the petition into consideration,” Dr. Laura Boren, Vice President of Student Life, said. “There are a lot of factors that pertain to parking and we want to make sure we address all the students’ needs.”