The plan calls for a large social space with flexible uses. The building will be located north of Maynard Street, across from Baker-Berry Library. The location will be significantly closer to the McLaughlin cluster than the current dining halls.
"I think it's very clear that lots of things are moving to this [northern] part of campus, and there's a lot of space up there that we never used," Miesha Smith '09, the Assembly treasurer, said.
Other students expressed concern that the dining spaces might become divided between freshmen and upperclassmen because the McLaughlin cluster houses primarily freshmen while the residence halls around Thayer and the Collis Center house mostly upperclassman.
The plan for the building features a large, south-facing dining area on the first floor that will have chairs and tables as well as "quite a bit" of soft seating and comfortable furnishing, according to John Scherding, associate director of design in the Office of Planning, Design and Construction. The dining area will be two stories tall with large windows, "causing it to glow," he added.
There is still room for change in the layout of the building, Mary Gorman, associate provost and executive officer at the College, said.
"We're renovating a building we haven't built yet," Gorman said. "This project has been ongoing for a while. It's morphed."
The dining hall will provide food service from 7:00 a.m. until 1:00 a.m, and, as a result, Thayer Dining Hall would close at 9:00 p.m. Students suggested that this shift could alter the dynamics of the dining halls and student social spaces on campus.
The floorplan also includes a second floor with one large "subdividable" meeting room, several open social spaces and a graduate suite.
Students questioned how the open spaces would be put to use and asked if study rooms on the second floor would have closed doors and be "reservable."
"We've got to make sure we have a balance between study and social," Uthman Olagoke '11, the Assembly secretary, said.
Other student suggestions included televisions in the larger, open social spaces, pianos available for a cappella group rehearsals and mirrors for dance rehearsals.
When asked whether social spaces could host events with alcohol, Gorman replied that students would need to discuss the issue further.
Gorman did not have a specific timeline for construction yet, but said construction documents should be completed this spring.
"The president has asked that we work very hard to keep this project moving," Gorman said.
In other business, the Assembly passed legislation to challenge students at the University of Pennsylvania to a competition for voter turnout for the presidential election. Student Body President Molly Bode '09 sent a formal challenge to Penn, and a response is expected soon.
Student Assembly passed additional legislation to fund an alternative-space party, to be held in the Hovey Grill on Oct. 24. The Grill will undergo renovations this week, and the party will be an opening celebration for Hovey Grill, Bode said.
