The site of Wentworth House, which sits near the main entrance to the McMaster campus, has been designated as the future home of the Wilson Building for Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences. With demolition of Wentworth House scheduled for May 2013 and construction on the Wilson Building commencing next summer, current tenants of the building are searching for new spaces on campus.
“Where we’ll go is still up in the air,” said Connor Bennett, a director of MSU service MACycle, which sits in the lower part of Wentworth House. “There’s some speculation and some vague ideas being thrown around at this point, but that’s kind of it.”
In addition to MACycle, organizations presently remain in the building include the Muslim Students Association, the McMaster Children’s Centre day care, CUPE 3906, the Photography Club and some offices of Facilities Services.
The Graduate Students Association moved their bar, the Phoenix, out of Wentworth House and to the Refectory Building earlier this month. Although the GSA offices remain in Wentworth House, they will follow the Phoenix across campus in the near future.
This academic year, a lounge for off-campus students will sit in the Phoenix’s old spot.
“I’ve been forwarding [needs of our clubs and services] to the University administration,” said David Campbell, Vice-President (Administration) of the McMaster Students Union. “They’ve assured us that there will be space and that they have no reason to believe that there won’t be. On our end, we have no reason to believe they won’t come through on that.”
“We’ve spoken to all of the tenants, and we’re working with each of the tenants to find alternative accommodations for them where they need it on campus,” said Roger Couldrey, VP (Administration) of the University.
Although Bennett is not aware of a plan for MACycle’s relocation, which needs to happen by the end of the year, he is optimistic that the powers that be will find a solution. He is aware, though, that his service has particular needs that must be looked after, much like the building’s other tenants would.
“I haven’t really been given cause to worry that we’ll be tossed to the side. But given that MACycle has some very specific requirements of a space … There are a lot of criteria we need to meet, and I don’t know where that is on campus and I don’t know how to find out,” he said.
MACycle requires a location with sufficient space, street access, ventilation, power and, preferably, good visibility, according to Bennett.
“I’m excited to move to a new spot. I think it will be a good change for MACycle,” he said.
Since the Phoenix Bar and Grill’s move to the Refectory Building, students have encountered unexpected wait times to enter the restaurant.
“What we’re trying to do is maintain a balance between getting as many people as we can in the restaurant but also maintaining our level of service,” said Jessica Merolli, president of the Graduate Students Association, which owns and operates the bar.
“It has meant that wait times are a little bit longer than they normally are.”
Merolli suggested that the Phoenix wait times are the result of the heightened demand to eat in its larger location and because of increased exposure to undergraduates.
The new Phoenix location was initially touted for its larger capacity, with 35 more seats inside and 81 more seats on the patio. But despite the restaurant’s ability to accommodate more customers, on numerous occasions there have been several sections closed in the main dining hall.
The new location has an occupancy limit of 181 people. Although the liquor license allows for up to 362, the liquor inspector explained that capacity must be capped at the number of people that can fit inside – in the event that it rains and the patio patrons all want to come indoors, for example.
The policy was the same at the Wentworth House location, where capacity was capped at 150, even though the liquor license allowed for 443.
At the new location, though, patrons waiting for tables at the door can see most of the indoor dining hall, which is sometimes relatively empty while the patio is full.
On the service end, the distance between the kitchen and patio has been an issue. In the Wentworth House location, the smaller patio was much closer to the kitchen, which ensured smoother and faster delivery of food. It also ensured more consistent service because servers wouldn’t lose time travelling between the kitchen and the patio.
Merolli also mentioned other factors that she thought were part of the necessary “learning curve” at the new location. The staff transitioned during the restaurant’s peak rush time in Welcome Week and has been adapting to the new kitchen, equipment and seating arrangement.
As the semester continues and things get more settled at the new location, the Phoenix is looking to enhance its service by adding new menu items and allocating a certain number of seats for reservations.
“We’re really happy that everyone is so excited to come to the bar and we’re trying our best to get people through as quickly as possible,” said Merolli. “We don’t want to sacrifice the quality of the service in order to get more people in the restaurant.”
TwelvEighty, the other campus bar, has seen an increase in sales from last year through the first two weeks of September. Whether or not there is link between this increase and the wait times at The Phoenix is uncertain.
Sam Colbert
Managing Editor
If all goes according to plan, the transition will be seamless.
As it normally would, the Phoenix will close for the holidays after December exams. When it reopens for second term in January, the Pheonix will be in its new location on the main floor of the Refectory building, above Bridges Café.
“We’ve been working on this project for three years,” said Jessica Merolli, president of the Graduate Students Association (GSA). In the same way that the MSU owns TwelvEighty, the not-for-profit Phoenix is owned by the GSA.
The renovation will be funded by graduate student fees, which means that prices will generally be unaffected.
The new location will feature a higher capacity, a larger patio and an expanded kitchen. But given the success of the Phoenix in its current Wentworth House location, project managers have tried to maintain the rustic feel that differentiates the bar from other campus establishments, like TwelvEighty.
“We’re building on the older feel,” said Merolli. “It’s not a modern-looking restaurant; it’s kind of that mix, like a gastro-pub. We really want to keep the pub element of the look of the Phoenix.”
Though the new kitchen will allow for more specials and menu additions, the Phoenix menu won’t change drastically in the move. Burgers, for example, will continue to be a staple, especially with the addition of a charbroiler to the kitchen.
“We’re still going to have the microbreweries on tap – we’re still going to have a lot of beers on tap, a lot of variety,” added Merolli. “When we went into the project, we knew that these are the kinds of things the Phoenix does really well, and we want to continue to do them really well.”
Even since the 1980s, there has been discussion of demolishing Wentworth House. With the Phoenix and other organizations gradually moving to other locations, it looks like the building is finally on its way to being torn down.
“It’s important for the Phoenix to get a permanent space on campus. We’re taking over the space, and it’s not like Wentworth House, where you can never get a straight answer of what’s happening to that building … so it’s nice to have a building that can’t be torn down, because [the Refectory] is a heritage building.”
Originally, the Refectory housed the campus cafeteria. More recently, the space has been used for exams, among other things, while being reserved from any permanent use in anticipation of the Phoenix move.
Along with the bar, the Graduate Students Association offices are moving out of Wentworth House and into the Refectory building. But, because the GSA move would interfere with the operations of Bridges, they will wait until May, when Bridges closes for the summer.
A big priority for Merolli has been moving the bar and the offices to a wheelchair-accessible location. “There are grad students that can’t get to our office which is, for me, unacceptable. It is a lot of money to be spending, but I’m excited to set up the GSA as an organization that is accessible,” she said.
Merolli is a fourth-year Ph.D. student in political science. She’s been President of the GSA for two and a half years, and the project started just before her three-year term did. “It’s really nice to see that it is actually happening.”
There is a chance that the move from one location to the other, which will require transport of the point-of-sale system, among other equipment, will spill into the first week of second term. A second debit/credit machine will likely also be added to accommodate the extra patrons. Though, because major renovations will be complete, the move won’t take long.
