The topic of a Husky Union Building (HUB) renovation was revisited at Tuesday night’s ASUW Senate meeting, with a guest forum by Paul Zuchowski, Assistant Director of Student Activities and Union Facilities (SAUF).

Zuchowski spoke of recent developments in the ongoing plan to renovate the HUB, a plan that has been in consideration since 2006, when SAUF began a dialogue with student leaders regarding expansion of the building.

Built in 1949, the HUB was originally proposed in response to student desire to have a “living room”-type location on campus. The building experienced substantial expansions and renovations in 1952, 1960 and 1975.

Issues facing the HUB include decentralization of student groups, lack of daylight and ventilation problems.

“Where we stand today is that we have a proposed plan,” Zuchowski said at the meeting, presenting floor plans for what the HUB would look like if the project were to go into effect.

Goals for the renovation include creating a more welcoming space, connecting to the campus and building community.

These goals would be reached through changes such as moving the HUB branch of the U-Bookstore, creating new traffic patterns, building a new Senate chamber and ballroom and moving administrative functions to the third floor.

SAUF is now in the process of completing schematic designs. When finished, these designs will be presented to student groups such as ASUW and the Graduate and Professional Student Senate.

“The Services & Activities Fee Committee (SAF) has mandated in their policies and procedures that any entity seeking capital funds for building projects must seek resolutions from the elected student governments,” Zuchowski said in a later interview.

The project will be presented in the agendas for both GPSS and ASUW sometime in April.

“We’re in support of this project,” ASUW President Anttimo Bennett said. “Most students would agree that this is something that needs to be done with the HUB. If it’s not done now, it’s going to continue to be something that needs to be looked into at some point.”

According to the SAUF Web site, a request will be made in June to the Services & Activities Fee Committee, which is composed of students, to allocate funding for bonds paid for by students over the next 30 years. If approved, the project will be taken to the UW Board of Regents for the same approval in July.

According to the site, construction documents will be prepared from August 2009 through June 2010, and pre-construction relocation will begin in September 2010.

The $140 million project will be presented as one capital request that covers not only renovations of the HUB, but also Hall Health Primary Care Center and the Ethnic Cultural Center.

Between $100 and $120 million would be covered by student fees, which would increase by $75 per student as a result of the project.

One concern raised at the meeting was how the project will be possible during a time of economic downturn.

“The economy is bad, and hopefully the economy will improve by time of construction,” Zuchowski answered. “Ultimately, it will be the students who decide if this project goes forward or not.”

Some students, however, are concerned about undertaking such a project during an economic recession, primarily with regards to making the building as environmentally friendly as possible.

“This is something that should represent high environmental standards,” junior Conor McLean said. “And if it means waiting a few years, we should do that.”

Others expressed desire for a more immediate renovation.

“The building needs to happen,” junior Melvin Donaldson said. “We’re keeping to the commitment towards sustainability and construction.”

If approved, construction for the project is scheduled to begin in January 2011 for a projected completion date of January 2013.

Reach contributing writer Ivan Vukovic at news@dailyuw.com.