Student Union

Why is there a HOLE in the South 40?!  Recap
 
Sorry to see that the rain kept so many people away from what was an awesome forum on the architectural future of the South 40 Monday night!  We had one of the principal architects, officials from Bon Appetit including Nadeem Siddiqui, regional manager, and Chef Gary Saurez, Dean Justin Carroll to represent ResLife, and Vice Chancellor Steve Hoffner.  I want to run through some of the highlights for you in bullet-point form. 
 
ALSO: Watch for an update because the architects have promised to post the 3-D video of the future of the 40 on their website soon!
 
My favorite observations, in no particular order (it's worth reading through them -- I promise!):

- 4/5 of the Dining area on the S40 is still to come.  There will be a tacqueria, salad bar, Mongolian Grill, and many other stations for everyone.  Also, there will be LOADS of extra seating!

- The new fitness center will return to its rightful place above the main servery and will be much larger.

- There will be one closed off area for dining in the S40 House that can be booked for student group meetings.

- Info screens and televisions with news programs will be featured in the new building.

- An expanded Bear’s Mart concept will be put in place, intended to serve as a Whole Foods type concept.  Get Excited.

- The second floor dining will be converted to a Kosher Kitchen as all dining moves to the bottom floor.

- All dishware and silverware will be sustainable – paper items only for take out!

- Chef Gary talked about the new Chef’s Kitchen which will be a small kitchen that you can book for special events including: cooking classes, birthdays, and private dinners where the chef will cook right in front of you.  They will feature cooking classes about how to cook in your dorms (including the microwave), and they will use it to test new menu ideas.  They may include cameras to broadcast cooking classes to those who can’t make it, and they will also start testing out specialized allergy-friendly meals.

- College Hall will be built on the 40 which will serve as a Hogwarts-Style grand hall complete with (hopefully) banners to represent the various ResColleges and seating for a ton of people.

- Ruby will remain standing instead of coming down this summer.  This is the only dramatic change to the timeline due to the economic recession.

- The Swamp will be brought back to its full capacity – removing the asphalt driveway currently cutting it in half.

- Student art will hopefully be displayed both inside and out of the new buildings.

- They are hoping against all hopes to have a large water fountain in the middle of the 40 which…. It has been suggested… could be used to throw people into on hot days.

- And, lastly, they will hold student competitions later this year to name the kiosks and dining halls on the South Forty.  (I’m personally pulling for Bear’s Den… let’s not mess with tradition here!)
 
The event was fantastic!  I wish you had been there and encourage you to come to any similar events.  As I said, watch for a link to the ResLife website once they have uploaded the schematics and 3-D video tour of the new South 40.  We are all in for a treat – and I, for one, cannot wait to see it completed!