The current student-subsidized renovation project is aimed at modernizing the 83-year-old Memorial Union. It will reorganize the internal spaces, provide better ADA accessibility, modernize wiring, plumbing and safety infrastructure and repair leaking roofs, broken fixtures and damaged interior surfaces. If the University of Wisconsin Memorial Union is going to be an important part of campus life for generations to come, there is important work to be done. However, there is considerable controversy over the “glass box” addition to the north of the Union Theater.

Why is the theater addition a bad idea?

This addition is a gross violation of the architectural integrity of the building. The Theater Wing was built in 1938. It is a classic example of art deco architecture and is presumably protected from such an assault on its essential character. Had the original architects wanted a “glass box” on the front of the theater, it would be there.

This glass box will tower one-and-a half stories over the remaining terrace area, creating a semi-enclosed “canyon” – hot and poorly ventilated in the summer and cold and dark in the spring and fall. There is debate about whether it will block the view of the sunset. It will. The question is whether it is considered significant or not. There is also no doubt that it will obstruct the westward view of Picnic Point and University Bay. One thing that makes the ambiance of the terrace special is the grand west-to-east vista of Lake Mendota. Why tamper with this extraordinary social space?

There was nothing about a glass box addition on the ballot when the students approved it. It is a clear case of bait and switch. Students didn’t want an addition. Union management removed all reference to an addition on the last ballot and offered assurances to students that they needn’t fear one. At a forum in 2005, on the eve of the referendum, Benjamin Hawke, Wisconsin Union Directorate Vice President of Administration, assured students, “We’re not trying to modernize [the Union] and put metal and glass everywhere…”

Union officials now point to a web link on the ballot that connected to a website. Had a student made their way to the Union website, they would found have plans that showed merely a slightly expanded theater lobby extending no further than the edge of the current overhang. Nothing like what is now planned. But pointing to a web link on a paper ballot is nonsense in any event.

The fall registration issue of The Badger Herald published the 2006 version of the lobby expansion above their article “Proposed Union remodel sparks campus controversy” [Page A2]. I think this is a bit deceptive. I recommend that readers go to savetheterrace.org, where the 2006 drawings are placed alongside 2011 renderings. The “mission creep” is quite evident.

Because “glass box” advocates were challenged with the fact that the referendum promised a “student lounge/coffee shop” and not a theater addition, they now call it a student lounge. Nonsense. From the beginning, the addition was described as an “event space,” a “pre-event space” or a “reservable space.” As with the area adjacent to Tripp Commons, this is about rentals to corporate groups, conventions and wedding parties. But as a Badger Herald editorial said, it inevitably comes down to theater revenues.

When it was built in 1938, the Memorial Union Theater was the only game in town. Indeed, it was the premier theater in southern Wisconsin. Few venues rivaled it. Some of the most famous celebrities in the entertainment world came to perform.

Times have changed. There are now many alternatives available for theatrical and musical entertainment. Madison is over-venued. Nearly every theatrical/music venue struggles to pay the bills.

The Wisconsin Union Theater now runs on a deficit. It’s partly because there are other opportunities for staged entertainment. It is also because they present a season of productions aimed at niche audiences – international music, chamber groups, jazz, dance companies and the like. It’s good stuff, but by their nature these are not “big draws.” The theater also opens its space to various campus and community performing groups. It has an important role to play in Madison’s arts and theater community and is well worth keeping alive and strong. However, selling alcohol at intermission will not balance the books.

Renovation plans call for a much-needed theater upgrade. No one objects to these improvements: modern heating and cooling systems, better building access, new seats and carpeting, updated lighting and sound systems, a reconfigured backstage to reflect current needs and additional rehearsal space. Using projected cost estimates, the theater renovations will consume about 15 percent of the total budget – far more than any other programmatic area. Is that not enough? On top of that, they want a $2.5 million addition that will absorb a large chunk of the Union’s publicly-available unobstructed outdoor space.

What might be done with this space? The Upper Terrace needs to be improved. One could easily imagine a new open-air plaza with fixed and moveable gathering places, some sheltered and others open. It needs better ADA access from both Park Street and the Lower Terrace. The theater lobby could be expanded as depicted in the 2006 renderings: improving access and allowing for space at intermission. There should be better access to the two theater lounges that already exist. None of these options were considered.

If the Union management is confident that the majority of students are willing to trade outdoor terrace space for revenues, then they should be willing to put it to a campuswide vote. Let the students decide.

John Sharpless ([email protected]) is a professor of history and a faculty representative on the Union Renovation Planning Committee.