By Reem Ghaleb
MacHall’s loading dock will be relocated from the south to the north side of the building in the next 3–5 years as part of the MacHall redevelopment plan.
“This is long term so there are no immediate plans whatsoever,” said vice-president of facilities management and development Bob Ellard. “The first phase of any development would be to relocate the loading dock probably to the north side of the building.”
The current loading dock faces the Taylor Family Digital Library. Ellard said its location is dangerous due to the high pedestrian traffic.
“[The loading dock is] a safety hazard, potentially from the trucks coming in and out. It looks better to be more out of the way,” said Students’ Union vice-president operations and finance Eric Termuende. “It makes sense all across the board.”
Plans for the vacant space left by the loading dock are still uncertain.
“[Relocation] would free up all the loading dock space for things that are more suitable to be on the quad,” Ellard said. “It would all be student space — so lounge space, eating space, offices — but the view to the quad and the rest of the campus is very nice so we would want to take advantage of it.”
Discussions for the master plan of the re-development of MacHall are expected to continue for a few years to address the challenges of funding and relocation.
“How are we going to phase the building because the building is fully occupied now?” Ellard said. “So how do you not shut down the business? We would certainly want all the businesses to remain open so that is a huge challenge.”