TWU students voted to raise the fee in order to build a new student union in Feb. of 2015. Since then, construction has stretched out its legs all over the Denton campus, but what students used to call Hubbard Hall continues to arouse excitement and rumors concerning the new student union and what it will be like.
The Lasso is the first to share confirmed information with the entire student body after an exclusive tour of the building that is still under construction.
125,000 square feet of renovated or brand-new space will be opened next Fall, and the new space’s intentions are recognizable in the planning and construction. The first floor of the new student union will feature a lactation room, veteran’s lounge, commuter lounge, meditation space, performance lounge, lockers, a food pantry support area, auditorium, and about 25 meeting rooms that open up to the hallways.
“We didn’t want any departments taking ownership of the meeting rooms, because it’s a student building,” Director of Student Life David Sweeten said. “This design was picked because it had the most natural light.”
In addition to the continuation of Chartwells for dining services at the stand-alone dining facility that is under construction in the Pioneer Hall parking lot, TWU will be housing Qdoba, another non-national food option, and a full-menu Chick-fil-a on the first floor of the new union. Yes, kids, chicken minis for breakfast.
The new building will also feature an art gallery that is significantly larger than the current 010 Gallery.
“It’s going to be in a much more visible place than our current one is,” Sweeten said.
Though the first floor will be bustling, the new student union will still have room for students looking for a place to study. The Student Organization Workspace will be a more homey, relaxing space with three sides of natural light and both fixed and movable furniture.
To unify all of the different areas of the building, a committee comprised of students and staff will select graphics and themes displayed throughout the building, including the new Global Reach Wall showing all of the countries TWU students are represented from.
“It’s important we tell people where we are, where we’ve been,and where we’re going,” Sweeten said. “We have some students who have done some pretty amazing things.”
The second floor will feature the classic-but-renovated rotunda entrance that captures TWU history, but the ballrooms’ increased size, juice and smoothie bar, and student information desk will all be additions that open with the new Union.
The Space Utilization Advisory Committee has been meeting for almost a year now to decide what will become of the current Student Union building, but these “fresh-off-the-press” updates should be enough excitement to handle for the next few months.
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