Cal State San Bernardino on June 4 broke ground for a three-story, 120,000-sq.-ft. expansion of its Santos Manuel Student Union.
The $90-million expansion, which is set to be completed by September 2021, will be constructed immediately north of the existing student union.
The expansion, which was approved by the California State University Board of Trustees last month, will comprise of a multi-purpose ballroom, an eight-lane bowling alley and game room, a pub, food service and retail space, collaboration spaces for student organizations and student support centers, and a bookstore.
The project’s architect is LPA Architects in Irvine and the construction contractor is Hathaway Dinwiddie of Los Angeles.
The expansion will have two primary entrances on the first level: the southern entrance nearest to the existing Santos Manuel Student Union and the north entrance accessed from Coyote Walk, the main campus pedestrian spine.
The southern wing of the first level includes a pub with outdoor seating, game room, eight-lane bowling alley, and gathering space. The northern wing will house food vendors, retail space, dining and lounge space, and the relocated bookstore. Access to the northern wing of the building can be restricted, if needed, during late-night hours when the pub and bowling alley remain open.
Though the new facility will not be physically connected to the existing student union, the project will also renovate the existing union to visually and functionally link the building in a number of ways. A plaza will be created between the south entrance of the expansion building and the north entrance of the existing building and the existing building’s north entrance will be converted to a glass storefront. Further, a space of 29,000 sq. ft. will be renovated to include a new wellness and counseling center along with various meeting and support spaces.
