The Students’ Union Building Fall 2020: what services are open?
Almost all food vendors will open while RATT remains closed due to COVID-19 precautions
Helen ZhangStudents needing to visit campus can once again be greeted by that classic Subway bread smell as various SUB services begin to re-open this fall.
Despite being one of the only North Campus buildings to remain open during quarantine, many Students’ Union Building (SUB) services were unavailable to students. However, this coming semester SUB has re-opened many of their services alongside expanding their hours from seven a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week with the hours of individual vendors varying. As per municipal regulations, students must wear a mask while in SUB.
Tl;dr SUB services currently open
- All food vendors except Hula Poke
- SUBmart
- University Health Centre Pharmacy
- Student Life Central desks
- Campus Foodbank (ten a.m. to six p.m. Thursday with an appointment)
- Dewey’s
- SUBprint (online order with in-person pickup)
- U of A Bookstore
Starting this September, all food vendors except Hula Poke will be open for business. Students will also be able to purchase items from SUBmart and the University Health Centre Pharmacy. Student Life Central desks will also be open to help students.
The University of Alberta Bookstore is currently open for in-store textbook pickup. Provided by the U of A Alumni Association, the bookstore is also offering all U of A students one free package of disposable masks.
Room At The Top (RATT) will remain closed for the time being though RATT on the Patio will be operating from September 1-4 and 8-11 from 11 a.m. to six p.m.
Though not technically in SUB, Students’ Union owned and operated restaurant Dewey’s is now open for both in-person dining and online ordering with contactless pick-up. Keeping with social distancing protocols, Dewey’s capacity has been lowered to 50 per cent and tables have been staggered to maintain 2 meters with plexiglass barriers. Dewey’s will be open from 11 a.m. to six p.m. Monday to Thursday and from 11 a.m. to eight p.m. on Friday.
The Campus Food Bank (CFB) will also be open Thursday from ten a.m. to six p.m. for hamper pickups. Student’s must sign up for an appointment during these hours. All other communication with CFB can be done through their email [email protected].
Students’ Union services such as the Peer Support Centre and The Landing will continue to work only virtually. Safewalk will remain closed for the time being.
Counselling and Clinical Services and First Peoples’ House, which usually operate out of SUB, will be virtual for the fall semester. The University Health Center will continue operating over the phone with in-person appointments only for physician-determined certain cases.
Students’ Union Building important for building community, SU prez says
For Joel Agarwal, Students’ Union president, re-opening business in SUB was a necessary move for creating an on-campus community for the 1,500 students living in residence this semester.
“We really want to ensure that students have a community and their needs are met,” he said. “The Students’ Union building has health services, a pharmacy, groceries, and food. These are things students need access to, specifically those living on campus that find it challenging to travel.”
According to Agarwal, SUB remaining open during the summer allowed the Students’ Union the experience needed to operate safely during the fall.
“Being the only building open for much of the summer, we’ve had a large opportunity to get a unique knowldege of how to operate safely once campus gets busier,” he said.
According to Agarwal, the Students’ Union has taken multiple pre-cautions for the fall. This includes introducing 2 meters between furniture, having all Students’ Union staff take online safety training, and creating rapid response plans readily available for potential COVID-19 outbreaks on campus. Custodial staff will also regularly sanitize common areas of SUB.
Though an important aspect of SUB, Agarwal emphasized that the Students’ Union will do its best to ensure maintaining a campus community doesn’t come at the expense of students’ health.
“We’re really taking this seriously and ensuring that students have a community space on campus where they can gather together, but in the most safe and accessible ways,” he said.
“It is a priority of ours to make sure those students’ needs are met while health and safety [is maintained.]”
CORRECTION: On September 2 at 1:20 p.m. the article was rectified to correct the hours of the Campus Food Bank hamper pickup to ten a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday and to clarify students should use email to communicate with the CFB. The article previously stated the hours as ten a.m. to 5 p.m. on both Wednesday and Thursday. The Gateway regrets the error.
