Student centre venture

Plans for the new YUSU Student Centre near James College have been released, days before construction work is due to begin.

The new Student Centre will expand and redistribute office space currently used by Union staff and officers in the smaller building outside the Roger Kirk Centre and Maths Department. The new centre will take over the building opposite which is currently occupied by McQs. The bar will move into the Roger Kirk centre.

Sabbatical officers are to move into a new open-plan office, designed to increase contact with students, as part of a move to improve links between the Union and its members. The project is part of the new Strategic Plan agreed earlier this year, and accompanies the University’s ongoing campus renovations of the library, Central Hall and Heslington East.

“We’ve essentially shifted to a layout which makes it easier for students to see their officer,” said YUSU President Tim Ngwena over the weekend. He went on to explain that the plans will keep the administrative functions “out of the way.”

Accompanying the new office space will be a fully kitted-out lounge area, bookable for use by student societies. The lounge will be dividable and adaptable for a number of different meetings or events. Ngwena noted that this would include “some desirable design concepts such as gender-neutral toilets, baby changing facilities, better cycle storage and an expanded waiting area outside of YUSU.” Head of Commerical Services Jon Greenwood commented from the University’s perspective. He said: “the plans are two-fold. We need to improve the South entrance to the University and make it look more like a modern campus in line with Heslington East. Secondly, YUSU need more office space and have shown a preference for this site.”

Original plans included discussions for a nightclub space, as is the case at many campus universities. As the plan would mean relaying the foundations of the building, however, the idea was scrapped. The full cost of the new space is estimated to cost £2.2m. Of that, £500,000 is to be taken from YUSU’s reserves fund for capital projects, to contribute to the Student Centre, with the rest funded by the University. Greenwood added that “YUSU’s money comes from the University anyway so it is appropriate that YUSU contribute, the space is for them, after all.” Plans for the Roger Kirk are yet to be completed.

Ngwena described how the nightclub was discussed but a suitable location could not be found for the time being. Greenwood stated that “for a decent nightclub you need a lot more space than this area would release and it would cost a lot more money; therefore it is not in the pipeline at the moment.”

Rather than the nightclub space, however, McQs’ likely move into the Roger Kirk Centre sees the possibility of it changing hands, with Commercial Services approaching YUSU for operating rights over the bar. This would make it the second Union-run bar at the University, though a business plan has not been finalised, and YUSU would not confirm if this had been finalised.

The full capacity of the new space will be around 600, most likely utilised during sporting fixtures, where other spaces like The Courtyard cannot match demand. Catering services, including the Costa Coffee at the front of the building, will remain in the space.

Additionally there are unconfirmed rumours of a campus late-night food offering being launched – the first of its kind at York. The new services would provide essential cheap late-night food.
YUSU would not comment on the rumours of a late-night campus takeaway.

James College, who will neighbour the building, are likely to work alongside the University in the coming months with the new space, which will also be fully landscaped to fit with newer campus buildings. The design and feel have been likened to the Berrick Saul building on the opposite side of the campus lake.

The project is scheduled to be completed on the 12th October, the first day of Freshers’ Week. Whether these are realistic aims remains to be seen, with other campus projects notorious for never quite finishing on time.

Administrative staff will remain in the current Student Centre building, and staff will also occupy the YUSU Studio next to Your Shop. The Finance Office, used by societies and York Sport clubs, will be extended and the Advice and Support Centre (Asc) will remain in its current space.

Other projects have seen Derwent Bar rebuilt, the expansion to the Heslington East campus, including Goodricke College and the Theatre, Film & Television, Law & Management and Computer Science departments. Langwith College is due to move to Heslington East in time for the 2012/13 academic year, where it will be accompanied by the second Sports Centre.

Up to three more colleges are expected to be created on Hes East in future, though earlier this term Director of Commercial Services Jon Greenwood revealed that Heslington East residents may not get a campus bar until 2014 at the earliest, and potentially not for another 20 years.