Moody Nolan, Inc., one of the firms, produced the design for the new Union South. The other firm, Uihlein Wilson has come out with the design of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.
The reconstruction would include adding a DoIT center to the building, constructing a large deck called the Sunset Deck on the second floor overlooking Lake Mendota and re-determining wall dimensions for Peet’s Coffee and the other food service areas. The Design Committee approved a plan for the different phases of construction and also earmarked $52 million spending cap for the first phase.
The committee also voted for an outdoor staircase directly from the Terrace to the new Sunset Deck and for an elevator to make it handicap-accessible. The committee voted to have architects find a safer location for the cash office. The committee also voted to move production storage out of the State Room to the Park Room on the fourth floor.
Work is expected to start in mid-2012 with slated completion in 2014.
The Memorial Union was built in 1928 with the theater wing added to the west in 1939. Parts of the building were added after that, including the low-ceilinged hallways that now house the Hoofers sailing and outdoors clubs.
