Saving the wooded hillock: An uphill battle

Was the Wooded Hillock paved or saved?  The Wooded Hillock, a forest fragment at the fringe of the University of Maryland, was selected as the best location to relocate buildings and parking lots to make way for development of upscale retail businesses.  Although the Hillock was targeted for conservation in the University’s master plan, environmental objections to the construction were countered with, “Preserving land is not the University’s mission”.  Thus, students, faculty, and staff joined forces to justify preserving the campus woods for its contributions to the University’s teaching and research missions.  Did they succeed?