This December, the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management (HRSM) is relocating from the Carolina Coliseum to Close-Hipp. The move is expected to take place Dec. 17.
HRSM's current dean, Haemoon Oh, said the plan was for the college to move years ago, dating back to before he even started working for the university.
"When I came for interview for this job in 2014, right, they already told me that we'll be moving," Oh said.
In order for the move to be facilitated, renovations at Close-Hipp have been underway for the last year and a half at a cost of about $17 million.
"It's definitely an investment, you know, it's not something that's considered necessarily a luxury," said Bryony Wardell, the HRSM director of communications and marketing.
Despite the cost, HRSM chief financial officer Scott Kaplan said he believes the investment is worth it for the students.
"For our space, in particular, we wanted to make it more amenable for our students and our faculty and staff to be able to offer the best services we can to our students," Kaplan said. "There's obviously a cost and impact on that, but I think every dime is worth it."
Oh said it was not only worth the cost, but it was necessary to accommodate the growing student population in HRSM.
"We literally ran out of space for faculty and student for classroom, so we have no room to physically grow the college," Oh said. "Yet, we still have a large number of applicants added each year, and more students are coming in our way, so we needed additional space to grow further."
Oh said the Carolina Coliseum didn't necessarily have the most suitable infrastructure for an academic unit.
"This building is not originally designed and constructed to be a classroom and faculty office," Oh said. "That's why the classrooms and faculty offices are not suitable for a typical academic organization and unit."
HRSM will occupy the first, sixth, seventh and eighth floors of Close-Hipp. The new renovations and move will offer students and faculty ample natural light with floor-to-ceiling windows around every floor, Oh said.
"I don't have any window around [Carolina Coliseum], so I have made a rule to go outside, walk around the courtyard for couple times each day in an effort to get some sunlight," Oh said.
The new renovations will include the brand new J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation Culinary Laboratory. The new lab is a 2,000-square-foot culinary innovation lab and classroom built with a donation from the J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation.
For students, it includes a classroom demonstration lab with a demonstration kitchen where students can observe instructors preparing food and demonstrating different techniques. There will also be a new test kitchen with new appliances that will allow students to see how top restaurants around the world are managed.
"This is going to be a huge resource for not only our hospitality management and tourism management students, but also for the community, as we also host classes for culinary professionals," Wardell said.
As part of the renovations, Tea Leaves cafe was added to the lobby, and the building will have more common areas for students.
Third-year hospitality management student Tess Morrisroe said she was looking forward to the move.
"We've called the Coliseum 'the dungeon' for a really long time," Morrisroe said. "Most of our projectors don't work, most of the computers in the computer labs don't work, and so being able to go to a place that's fully updated with that technology, as well, will hopefully make classes run a little smoother."
Second-year retail student Julia Nicolosi said she and a lot of students in the college already have some classes in Close-Hipp, and it would be nice to have all of her HRSM classes in one building.
"I have a class in Close-Hipp and then I have to come back [to the Coliseum] and then I have to go back there, so that's annoying" Nicolosi said. "Just having them one or the other is going to be good."
Second-year hotel and restaurant management student George Perkins said he didn't support the move because the location was not convenient for him.
"It's too far. I live over in Greene Crossing and I have a 9:40 next semester, so I have to hike all the way up to Close-Hipp," Perkins said. "That's just a pain for me."
Other students, such as first-year sport and entertainment management student Joe Atkinson, said the transition would be difficult, but he supported the move in the long run.
"I think, overall, once they renovate the building, make it really nice, it'll be cool," Atkinson said. "It'll be hard next semester, but overall, yeah, definitely support the move."
Oh said he is looking forward to seeing the new building and using it in the upcoming spring.
"We are planning to create a vibe there in a positive way," Oh said.