Navigating the Holmes Student Center’s interior has been the cause of confusion for many students, but the next decade may see a dramatic change in the structure’s layout.

Plans to renovate the center are being formulated by Finance and Facilities.

“What this plan has is a vision of what we’d like to see in the Holmes Student Center in the next 10 to 15 years,” said Bob Albanese, associate vice president of Finance and Facilities.

Exploring possible renovations

Albanese points to complaints about the building layout and the difficulty of handicap accessibility as primary concerns in the remodeling process, which will move in stages during the next 10 to 15 years.

“Any new students that come in there get immediately disoriented and lost,” Albanese said. “We need to do better than that.”

Another idea being explored in the renovations is the ability for students with meal plans to eat a meal at the student center while on campus instead of needing to go back to their residence halls, Albanese said.

The McDonald’s in the Blackhawk Cafeteria comes to the end of its contract this year, and negotiations are in order to see if it will return to the student center, Albanese said. He would also like to see the introduction of other franchises.

“We’d love to have some branded food,” Albanese said. “I think that is what students are looking for.”

A large part of the renovation centers on making sure there is student involvement in the planning stages.

“I like the idea of open forums and presenting our ideas and soliciting student input,” Albanese said. “The more times I get student involvement, the smoother things run.”

Students who frequent the student center have opinions on what should be done to remodel it. Some are interested in the possibility of a dining center on campus.

“I think it would be easier to use your dining dollars that way,” said Tim Karnoscak, a sophomore communication major. “Instead of going back to your dorm you could stay on campus.”

Effect on student fees

Funding for the project will likely come from raising student fees over the following years, Albanese said. Fees would be offset by the money businesses in the student center generate, including the University Bookstore.

“[The Holmes Student Center] is a student-run building, so students are going to pay somewhere along the line,” Albanese said. “Part of my job is to generate revenue in the building to keep those fees as low as possible.”

Plans for the renovations have not yet been presented to the university president or the Board of Trustees, and at this time no certain dollar amount has been estimated for the project’s total cost. The earliest start for the project would be fiscal year 2008, assuming all plans are approved by the university, Albanese said.

“It’s kind of exciting and something that we feel strongly we need to do,” Albanese said.