Student Union in Final Phase of Construction
by D.A. Barber
UA News Services
The fence around the new $58 million Student Union Memorial Center is coming down in a few days as construction moves into its final phase.
"The project itself is scheduled to be completed toward the end of the fall semester, and they'll be moving in and occupying come the spring semester," says Melissa Dryden, UA Facilities Design and Construction.
New sections of the union recently opened where the post office used to be, as well as a new section of the UofA Bookstore on the north side and the introduction of STA Travel last fall. A yet un-named bank also will be located at the Union. A Games Room offers coin-operated billiards tables, air hockey and a wide variety of video arcade games on the third floor.
"Come the spring semester, when the building will be completed, a lot of these spaces will be opened up," says Nick Adamakis, marketing director of the Student Union.
The first phase of the construction project was completed in August of last year, creating sites for restaurants such as Cactus Grill, Café Sonora, Domino's Pizza, Java Jive, McDonald's, On Deck Deli, Panda Express and Orville and Wilbur's.
"When students return this fall, they're going to see the completed food-court, though it won't be done as far as all the restaurant vendors that will be there," says Adamakis.
"That won't happen until next semester, but they'll have the full food-court seating capacity available to them so it won't be so tight."
The new building will have old, familiar places in it as well, such as The Cellar, Sam's Place and the Gallagher Theater. Plans to recreate the Cellar within the bowels of the new building are already in place, according to Adamakis. A theater will be reborn in the center of the new building, with modern theater seating and top-quality sound and projection facilities. Likethe old Gallagher, it will also be used during the day for meetings and presentations. Sam's Place will be located in more spacious and centrally located quarters on the first floor. U-Mart and Fast Copy will be open soon after school starts.
The eastside of the building (the first phase) was about six weeks behind schedule last year, but the Union is on track right now, according to Dryden, who says parts of the second phase are actually ahead of schedule. There are even rumors that the project may finish before the Dec. 15 deadline.
Returning students also will notice the current fencing around the construction site noticeably missing.
"There will still be construction in the building, but they'll pull the fence off the Mall," says Dryden. "They've replanted the grass, re-aligned the sidewalks - that type of thing, to reopen it in time for school."
When the total project is completed at the year's end, the new Student Union will be some 400,000 square-feet, almost double the existing building that opened in 1951 and was designed to accommodate 15,000 students. Today, UA's enrollment is more than 34,000 and the completed Union building will offer a number of new services, including a large number of easy-to-find restrooms. Besides the mall-like food court, the new Union also includes an open-air walkway between the bookstore and Student Union, and user-friendly entrances.
The floors in the first phase are being stripped and prepped for linoleum. The linoleum flooring will be used through both phases. A new and improved concrete staining process will be used in areas such as the convenience store, cellar and games room. Adding luster to the center, a donor has provided funding to build a red oak floor in the new ballroom.
The construction project is being funded by $59 million in bonds that will be repaid over 25 years, as well as profits from the bookstore and contracts with Pepsi, McDonalds, Domino's Pizza, and other Student Union vendors.
"As we progress through the semester, they'll be completing and opening more and more," says Dryden.
Marketing coordinator Adamakis says there will be a week-long "grand opening celebration sometime in mid-February.
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