Campustown in 2006 still had People’s Bar and Grill, and Es Tas was a newer bar that attracted a larger crowd toward the end of Scott Hagen’s time at Iowa State.

Hagen, a 2006 ISU alumnus in architecture from St. Louis Park, Minn., loved the variety Campustown had to offer.

“So many bars and so many different things to do in such a small area made it quite the attraction for all students,” Hagen said.

The thing Hagen remembers most about his time at Iowa State and in Campustown is how you didn’t feel as though you were walking block after block to get from one bar to another; you didn’t need a cab and you could meet up with friends quicker.

Along with Paddy’s Irish Pub and Es Tas, when it got closer to graduation time, Hagen’s favorite bar was People’s, now called Headliner’s.

“That’s a pretty common theme for most people in my class,” he said.

When he was a student, Hagen would brainstorm with other architecture students about how to improve Campustown and Welch Avenue.

Hagen and his classmates thought Welch Avenue could become more of a pedestrian and travel road accompanied by a courtyard of some sort. He described it as being similar to VEISHEA when the street is closed down because so many people are on it.

Hagen couldn’t think of many other Campustown improvements he wished he had had during his time at Iowa State.

“If you didn’t have it, you can’t really say you wish you had it,” he said.

With LANE4’s proposed plans, Hagen said that although there are needs for restaurants and other venues, it shouldn’t be in Campustown or on Welch Avenue.

“It’s not historic, but the ambiance it has, it ties the entire street and place together,” Hagen said. “In my opinion, it would be sad to see the bars go away.”