Plans collapse for Harriman as a South Campus student union

When the Student Association was looking for new office space this summer, it didn't have many options.

The Student Union already was - and still is - tight on space, and there were no vacant buildings on North Campus that would be suitable for student offices. That left South Campus, where several buildings were vacant, some to the point of disrepair. SA's best option was the recently vacated second floor of Harriman Hall.

After a summer of meetings vying for space in the South Campus building, SA lost out when the offices of the vice president for health sciences claimed the entire second floor of the building. The Sept. 21 decision not only quashed SA hopes, but it also ended a Student Affairs project to convert the building into a South Campus student union.

"There is a need for a South Campus university center," said Dennis Black, vice president for student affairs. "This decision sends us back to the drawing board in finding a real student center for that campus."

Harriman Hall is one of the oldest buildings on South Campus, in fact one of the oldest in all of UB. It originally was called Norton Union when it was built in 1933, serving as UB's student union through the early 1960s. Since then, it has served as a research center, dining center, concert hall and most recently as the headquarters for the department of women's studies.

In recent years, efforts have been made to make the building a more student-centric place on campus. Renovations included a new-look dining center in the building and a complete overhaul of the basement for the Creative Craft Center, a center that provides arts and craft classes open to students of all majors. The building also has a large hall many SA clubs have used for events ranging from concerts to fashion shows to lectures.

"We've been trying to become more focused on South Campus," said Sonia Kang, SA vice president. "A lot of groups have been trying to get space, but it's become more of a battle."

Kang said SA has been trying to establish a South Campus office since last spring. She said clubs like the Nursing and Exercise Science SA need South Campus space because a large portion of their constituents live and take classes there. In light of health sciences offices taking over that space, Kang said SA would explore a more basic approach to make SA services available on South Campus.

"We'll try to set up a room for students to drop off forms, maybe a drop box or a room with a student set up to collect forms and paperwork so club members don't always have to make the hike up to North Campus all the time," she said.

Both Kang and Black said Harriman Hall was an ideal location for student clubs because so many SA clubs already make use of the building's large event space.

"Friday and Saturday nights are almost always booked," Black said. "Harriman Hall is ideally located for a lot more people than the 1,400 to 1,500 people who live on South Campus. It's a walking campus that includes the students that live in the Heights and the surrounding community."

Black said Harriman Hall's proximity to the medical and dental schools made the vice president of health sciences relocation a good fit for that office, but it seriously cripples short-term plans for a South Campus student center.

The original Student Life proposal for a South Campus center, made in Fall 2004 included more space for student group offices, specifically SA, Generation Magazine and The Spectrum, but also additional Student Affairs services such as additional wellness services and even a relocated South Campus bookstore.

In losing the entire second floor, however, Black said it makes it difficult to make Harriman a real student hub.

"Harriman is connected to the medical school, so it works for them, but it's a real compatibility issue. It sends us back to the drawing board," he said. "You can't have health sciences offices upstairs and a wellness center bongo meeting in the lobby."

For now, as it has been for the past decade and beyond, students will have to do without a central South Campus location for their organizations, business and socializing. Black said Student Affairs was planning on making Harriman Hall available for student space this year, but is currently out of foreseeable options.

"We're not sure what our options would be, whether it would be new construction or renovating a space, a place like Michael Hall," Black said. "Our hope is to start planning that out soon."