Byron announced his plans to leave the University of Scranton in June 1982, giving the Board of Trustees ample time to find a suitable replacement. The Board of Trustees picked Father Joseph Allen Panuska, S.J., to succeed him. As Judge Conaboy wrote in a letter after he heard of Byron’s announcement to resign as President of the University of Scranton, Byron’s accomplishments and improvements at the school combine with the establishment of the Scranton Journal, setting new records in medical school acceptances and Fulbright Scholarships, winning a national basketball championship in men’s competition, and producing national title contenders in soccer and women’s basketball, “to make a review of Byron’s tenure at the University of Scranton an enormous success and a great contribution to this entire community.” The University Commons For twenty five years, there had been an effort by the University of Scranton to close the 900 and 1000 blocks of Linden Street which ran through the school’s campus. Through Father Byron’s tremendous effort, the improvement project was actualized in 1980. The Commons project proposed by Father Byron was intended to create a more attractive, park-like atmosphere on the campus and to eliminate the safety hazards associated with pedestrian and vehicle traffic. With that new space, the University hoped to create a twenty-foot wide brick walkway, trees, benches, a water fountain, and patio area in addition to developing the area with landscaping. His plan was met with resistance and objections from some members of the Scranton community. Some, including the Hill Neighborhood Association, expressed concerns about Linden Street’s closing negatively affecting traffic flow, failing to provide significant access to emergency vehicles, and decreasing the availability of parking in the Hill section of the city. Others, however, supported the University’s Commons plan, including notable organizations and individuals such as the Scranton Times, the Scranton Fire Chief Robert Ruddy, Scranton City Councilman James Doherty, the board of directors of the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce, the Lackawanna County Regional Planning Commission, and ABC local television affiliate WNEP TV-16. The University Commons proposal was approved by the Scranton City Council on December 20, 1978. In order to accommodate the concerns of some members of the Scranton community, the University replaced the 84 legal parking spaces closed on Linden Street with over 100 legal parking spaces. The University also reduced the size of the traffic triangle at Linden Street and Monroe Avenue by one-third,