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Space crunch cramps biz students

By Kevin Ritchie

Ryerson business students are being temporarily kicked out of their basement so the university can clear the ground for a new student centre.

The Ryerson Access Centre and the Working Students’ Centre, which will open in September, will set up shop in the bowels of the business building over the summer.

The Gould Street building, which housed the Access Centre will be torn down July 1 to make way for the student campus centre. The bulk of construction on the building will happen in March 2002, says RyeSAC president Cory Wright.

But administration’s plans for a student centre conflict with the business school’s desire to construct a business student centre.

Lee Maguire, associate dean of the school of business management, said his school can’t afford to give up the basement, which is used as a meeting place and study space for students, but he understands the space crunch Ryerson is facing.

“Half our clubs are living out of their lockers,” Maguire said. “We had plans for that basement and nobody told us something else was going in.”

Linda Grayson, Ryerson’s v.p. administration and student affairs, says the university has 20 to 25 per cent less space than it needs and so everyone must be flexible.

“It’s temporary until things can get sorted out,” Grayson said. “We’re choc-a-bloc full.”

Both Grayson and Wright say moving the Access Centre into the business building was the best solution in terms of accessibility, safety and cost.

Wright said the business building was chosen because wheelchairs can access the basement by elevator and it has roomy washrooms.

Maxine Laine, assistant director of student services, says the move is an opportunity to make the Access Centre bigger and better. She wants to set up a computer lab and use the new space to hold workshops on study skills.

Wright also said the school has plans to move the Access Centre to Jorgenson Hall permanently after RyeSAC, Copyrite and The Eyeopener move into the student centre.

And once the campus student centre is built, Wright said the school of business will have newly renovated space to play with.

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