Student center’s renovation timeline uncertain
September 19, 2013
By Will Wright | Assistant News Editor
New residence and dining halls are expected to be on campus within the next few years, but the construction of a new student center remains uncertain.
This fall, the university is conducting preliminary studies such as how much a new student center will cost, said Bob Wiseman, UK’s vice president for facilities management.
UK has not released a timeline for construction of a new building, but some employees will give their opinions on what should be included in a new building in a focus group on Thursday.
“As our student body expands and becomes more active they’re going to need more space,” said Student Government President Roshan Palli. “Even now, we use almost all the space in the Student Center.”
From summer 2012 to summer 2013, more than 1.8 million people visited the Student Center, according to the Student Center annual report, which is almost a 20 percent increase from 2010-2011.
“I think the Student Center we have now isn’t adequately meeting students’ needs,” Palli said. “So we have to do something about that.”
The Student Center had 11,325 room reservations in the 2012-13 academic year, according to the report.
The number of reservations has increased in the last five years when 8,269 reservations were made in 2007-08.
Student-run groups like Late Night Film Series, The Cats Den, Student Activities Board and the Center for Student Involvement all operate from the Student Center.
The Cats Den brought about 6,400 students to the Student Center in the 2012-13 school year, and the Film Series brought about 17,000 viewers, a 74 percent attendance increase from the 2011-12 school year for the organization, according to the report.
“I’m not entirely sure what the timeline is,” Palli said. “But it’s a priority for me and I think the administration recognizes that it is a necessity.”
