Stoutonia

Issue date: 10/2/08 Section: News

Media Credit: photo submitted by Anne Kressin UW-Stout uncovers its plans to redesign the MSC, as well as improve its heating, air conditioning and power systems at the open forum on Sept. 23

The Memorial Student Center could be headed for a major makeover.  On September 23, architects unveiled a $15 million project that would transform everything from the heating systems to the confining hallways.  The concept design for the MSC, built in 1985, would update the building’s cramped layout and dreary structure.

“It is like the living room for the campus,” said Tom Hanely of SDS Architects. “Students should feel welcomed and compelled to move through the building.”  

SDS Architects Inc., an architectural firm located in Eau Claire, is one of the two major architectural firms working on the MSC design. The other is Perkins and Will, whose specialty includes higher education buildings.  

The $15 million budget will cover system improvements, renovations and soft costs.  The basic air and electric systems of the MSC are in desperate need of upgrading.  Forty-one percent of the funding will go to renovating heating, air conditioning, fire protection, power and telecommunications to keep them up-to-date on safety regulations.

Thirty-two percent of the budget will fund renovations. Much of the inside will be gutted to redesign the way students interact with the space.  “This building is very compartmentalized,” states Jeff Stebar of Perkins and Will.  Plans are to tear down the lifeless cement block walls in favor of more windows and increased building efficiency.  Stebar is hoping this will create an “open, casual feel.” To encourage this, architects plan to create a large, light-filled atrium.  The atrium, nicknamed Union Square, will centralize the building by being visible from all the entrances and extending through both floors.  The student organizations center and the bookstore will connect to Union Square as will new student dinning services. The foodservices of the MSC are a large part of the renovation.

“[MSC foodservices] does not meet the current needs of the facility,” comments Paul Mackesey, president of Mackesey and Associates, a foodservice design and management consulting firm. “In a nutshell, there’s a need to rework and reengineer these spaces.” The concept design creates an expanded convenience store and a larger, redesigned lower- level food service area.

The last 27 percent of the budget will go to soft costs. This includes items like furniture and lighting.  

The MSC will also get certified from Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), the organization most widely used for assessing green buildings. The current plans would achieve a LEED certification score of 33 points, which would qualify the MSC for a silver rating.

If the funding is passed, construction is projected to begin May 2010 and finish up July 2011. Funding for this project will come from University of Wisconsin-Stout students in the way of segregated fees.  From 2008 – 2012, students will be charged a total of $142 to support the renovations at the MSC. With the sliding economy and increase in tuition, many students might find the bump in fees hard to justify, although paying now will save them money in the long run.  If the funding fails, the project will have to wait two years before it can appeal. With prices rising four to seven percent every year, the future price tag will be much steeper.  Whether funding is passed or not, renovations will happen for the system utilities. It would more efficient as far as cost and labor to do both of these projects at the same time.  

Architects and faculty are hoping students will be able to see the benefit of renovating the MSC now instead of later. Lucy Nicolai, Director of the MSC, remembers when students were faced with this same vote back in 1982 when they were deciding whether or not to build the MSC. “They had the vision and the foresight to know we needed something different and I feel that this is what our students feel,” said Nicolai.

If students wish to contact their senators on the issue they can go online or attend a SSA meeting held at the SSA office in the MSC on Tuesdays at 7 p.m.

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