Students speak on campus changes
With another new school year comes a big handful of changes for returning students to get used to as they reintroduce themselves to their studies as well as the hustle and bustle across the University of Regina (U of R) campus. As for student opinions on the shifting environment, attitudes vary.
For many, the most obvious differences have got to be the big white walls that have been erected in the Dr. William Riddell Centre and the Administration Humanities (Ad-Hum) building. When the U of R terminated its contract with Chartwells Foodservices in the spring of 2024, the hallways were buzzing with suspicion and guesses as to what everyone might return to, food-wise, in the fall.
Juanna, a second-year creative technologies student, shared, “I’m definitely lamenting over the loss of Tim Hortons right now. I’m going to miss their Boston Cream donuts and cream cheese bagels,” and pointed out that the construction in Ad-Hum is a bit of a nuisance.
Jabez, a fourth-year biology major agreed: “Everything is under construction. I want my Tim’s back.”
While students have said they are enjoying the new food vendors in the Riddell Centre, like Chick’N’Tendees, Java Junction, and Ultimate Rotisserie Experience, it is clear that it will take some time to adjust to the absence of the places everyone had been so used to indulging at.
For some, the big white walls inspire greater suspicion and even conspiracy. Lucas Babcock, a third-year theatre student said, “They got rid of Tim Hortons. They put a big box there instead. They’re hiding something in there. They’ve probably got like a goblin creature living in there, but we can’t know until they release it. Until then, we’ve got the two chicken places.”
A somewhat controversial new addition has been the new campus Starbucks in front of the Dr. John Archer Library. Kanan, a business student, appreciates the addition. “That’s really good because most of the time it happens that, in the winters, students study late,” she said.
Other students disagree. “I enjoy some of the new food vendors, but I’m not a huge fan of the new Starbucks,” shared Annika Danielson, fourth-year devised theatre student. Danielson is also frustrated with the construction, especially with the Starbucks crowding such a busy hallway as Archer and creating a lag in traffic during prime coffee time.
Danielson said, “I do like the new options that are available on campus. I just wish that construction would finish because everything just feels very cramped right now.”
With construction narrowing the halls, students have also noticed a peculiar population increase among the student body. Hannah Lawlor, a fourth-year biology student, has noticed this increase but theorizes that things may settle down as the semester carries on.
Mikkel O’Shaughnessy, a third-year theatre major, has also noticed this change and shared, “I’ve noticed that we have a lot more people here at the university than we have had in prior years. I feel like we’re finally getting back into the full thing since before COVID. It’s been a lot more crowded.”
While a lot of speculation still surrounds what might come to surprise everyone when all the construction is done, it was confirmed in Student Affairs emails that the Ad-Hum pit will be unveiled in the summer of 2025 and that Da India Curry Xpress will be coming to the Riddell Centre and Trifon’s Pizza to the Lab Café in the spring of 2025.
It seems that the narrowed halls and busier crowds, brand new food places and those closed off, and the location of Starbucks are the central topics on students’ minds when it comes to changes they’ve seen on the U of R campus.
Sources:
https://www.uregina.ca/foodservices/where-to-eat.html
student affairs emails
