Coffman Union is New Again
1/23/2003 | | Coffman Union photos by Mark Luinenburg |
By Chris Coughlan-Smith
A marriage between the old and the new, the high-tech and the high-style, Coffman Memorial Union reopens on January 21 after more than three years and $71 million worth of renovation. The rebuilt union is designed to satisfy the needs of students, with up-to-date services, as well as the desires of traditionalists, with a return to the building’s art deco origins.
“We took the challenge of creating the building as a new kind of gathering space on campus with 21st-century conveniences,” says Shawn Gaither, the lead interior architect on the project for Ellerbe Becket and part of a large team that planned and implemented the renovation. “At the same time, it was the images of the 1939 design that served as a springboard to how it should act and look.”
The renovation is the second in the building’s 62-year history. Opened in 1940, Coffman featured a stunning interior in what is usually referred to as the streamline moderne style, an offshoot of art deco characterized by horizontal lines and rounded surfaces. Although it drew rave reviews, and raised a few eyebrows, Coffman was largely made over in a renovation lasting from 1972 to 1975.
But foot traffic fell from more than 20,000 people a day in the 1970s to barely 10,000 by the mid-’90s. The building had no air conditioning and an aging heating system along with serious deferred maintenance problems. The ’70s look quickly fell out of style, and it became clear something had to be done. Then two things happened: In 1997, then-University President Mark Yudof and University planners began to look at developing what was then called the South Mall, behind Coffman, occupied by a crumbling parking ramp that blocked that end of campus from the Mississippi River below.
Then, a 1998 student survey revealed that seven of the 10 services students wanted most in a student union—a building they pay for and govern—did not exist in Coffman (see “What Students Want in Their Union” on page 37). It was decided then that the renovation of Coffman would not be just a major updating but would add the services students want and would be tied to what is now the Riverbend Commons area. The renovation would also undo what one critic called the “crime against architecture” rendered by the 1970s renovation.
“For years we had alumni come through Coffman and say ‘What happened to our building?’” says Maggie Towle (B.A. ’81), director of Twin Cities Student Unions. “When we looked at this renovation we decided it would be very important to protect and preserve our history and heritage. Not a lot of student unions have the kind of history we do.”
Coffman’s interior details and furnishings now look like 1940s originals. Although the color palette runs solidly maroon and gold, it is in muted tones that fit with the new decor. Some details—like original terrazzo floors, marble wainscoting, and fireplaces—existed in parts of the building but were covered over in some cases. In other locations the art deco feel had to re-created. “We looked to details like light fixtures and handrails to make a gesture toward that era,” Gaither says. “But we were very aware that we were on a budget and had to be as thoughtful as possible about how we did things.”
Gone are the irregular angles and pipe-like railings, the vinyl furnishings and fake-brick floors that marked much of the 1970s work. U planners and consultants, with much student input, came up with initial plans for the building, while Ellerbe Beckett architects and designers worked with the contractor, Ryan Companies, to make the vision of a thoroughly high-tech building with a thoroughly historic feeling a reality.
The renovation of Coffman involved gutting much of it, shifting walls, repairing ceilings, moving hallways and staircases, and adding some major new features, including a 400-seat theater, a 100-terminal computer lab, and a glass wall that extends four stories on the south side.
From the front, the most striking change is the removal of the angled side entrances and the pushed-out glass front that interrupted the building’s vertical columns and tall windows. The main doors have been returned to the center of the building. The central part of the building is open, with a grand escalator uniting the ground and first floors. Large glass windows facing north and south, along with new exits out the south side, give sight lines right through the building, uniting Northrop Mall with the Riverbend Commons area and Mississippi River beyond.
Some 100 feet northwest of the building sits what looks like a separate glass structure. This is, in fact, a new entrance to Coffman, a glass cube extending a floor above the plaza level as well as down to nearby Washington Avenue. This entry flows into the ground floor, where most of the new commercial outlets, such as restaurants, are located (see “Floor by Floor” on page 40 for what is located on each floor).
The ground floor also houses the University Bookstore’s flagship location, set to open the first week of March. Tucked into what had been a little-known contract parking garage under Coffman Plaza, the store is as big as large commercial bookstores. When it opens, the new bookstore will consolidate the Williamson, Health Sciences, and West Bank stores into one larger location (the Law School and St. Paul bookstores will remain open). “It will be a lot more convenient for students to be able to get all their books in one place, plus it will offer us a lot more flexibility,” says Bob Crabb, University Bookstores director. The new bookstore will offer much more space for academic press books, international periodicals, general interest books, and special events like author readings.
The first floor is largely common space —with study and lounge areas set off from main traffic areas—and the new theater. One original Coffman Union feature—the two-story entry area—has not been returned. In the ’70s renovation, the second floor ceiling was extended to add more space for student groups. And in the current renovation even more office space has been added to the second floor, meaning that more student groups than ever will call Coffman home.
Students are what Coffman is intended to be all about. Student fees and a Works Progress Administration grant paid for the original building, and student fees have covered the majority of operating and renovation costs ever since. Michael Holland (B.A. ’00), recalls that students were actively involved in planning the renovation and selling the idea to fellow students, who will be paying about $90 a year until 2021 to cover the new renovation. (The renovation cost more than originally anticipated, but the added cost is being covered by tenant rents and Coffman and University reserve funds.) “We had what we called a ‘road show’ we took out to student groups,” says Holland, who was president of the union’s governing board in 1998–99. “Initially there was a lot of skepticism, but when they saw what we wanted to do and why it was needed, most students became very enthusiastic.”
Although Holland and his fellow students were adamant that Coffman must meet student needs, they also supported the idea of returning it to its historic character. “You look at those original images and there is this feeling of grandeur to it,” he says. “We wanted students not only to feel like the union had everything they needed, but to be able to look around and say, ‘Wow, what a great building!’”
Chris Coughlan-Smith (B.A. '86) is senior editor of Minnesota.
 | | | |  | | What Students Want | The top 10 items students requested in a student union, and how the Coffman Memorial Union renovation accommodates those desires (from 1998 survey).
1 More short-term parking: The rebuilding and expansion of the parking garage south of Coffman has added 400 short-term spaces.
2 Bookstore: University Bookstores will open its new 45,000-square-foot store in the former Coffman Garage (under the Coffman Plaza) on March 3.
3 Computer lab: A lab with 100 computer stations has been created in the basement between the Whole Music Club and the Gopher Game Room in what had been game room space.
4 Post Office: The existing postal outlet in the ground floor of Coffman has moved to near the new ground-floor entrance in the northwest corner.
5 First-run movie theater: A 400-seat, multi-purpose theater has been added in the first-floor space that was formerly a small theater, a coffee shop, and open space. It is unlikely that first-run movies will show, however, due to their high cost; but “second-run” features could play there several weeks after release.
6 Air conditioning: An item slated to go in during the 1970s remodel but cut due to funding problems, air conditioning is now installed throughout the union.
7 Additional quiet lounge space: Wherever possible, lounge spaces have been separated from general traffic areas to make them more conducive to study. During the day, the Whole Music Club in the basement will be set up as study space.
8 Discount ticket office: This is now located at the main-floor information desk.
9 Copy center: A Copies on Campus outlet returns to the ground floor.
10 Food choices with local or national restaurant brands: Starbucks, Baja Tortilla Grill, Einstein Brothers Bagels, and Chick-fil-A are among the food outlets on the ground floor.
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| | Floor by Floor | Navigating the new Coffman Union
Basement
Gopher game room (bowling, billiards, and arcade)
100-terminal computer lab
Whole Music Club/study space
Campus security monitor station
Tunnel to health-sciences complex and parking
Ground Floor
Great Hall
University Bookstore (opens March 3)
Convenience store
Postal station
Starbucks Coffee
U.S. Bank branch
Copies on Campus outlet
Minnesota Marketplace (Chick-fil-A, Einstein Brothers Bagels, Baja Tortilla Grill, M Deli)
First Floor
400-seat theater
Commuter lounge
Lounge and study space
Fireplaces
Student activities office
Information center
Outdoor terrace
Second Floor
Student organizations
Third Floor
Meeting rooms and catering kitchen
Fourth Floor
Campus Club (private, but now open to all alumni for membership)
Fifth Floor
Twin Cities Student Unions administration offices
Sixth Floor
Mechanical operations and storage
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