Rockhurst Sentinel

Issue date: 12/2/06 Section: News

Media Credit: Katharine Agnew The patio area in front of Massman would be converted into an addition under the proposed plan.

Media Credit: Katharine Agnew Under the proposed plan, a pedestrian bridge would link Massman Hall to the Convocation Cener over this road.

Most can remember the headline: "Design Approved for New Health and Wellness Complex." We all saw the overwhelmingly detailed model standing outside of Massman Gallery. They even placed tiny little students walking jovially along the new sidewalks. And on the website, there was a finely tuned 'before and after' metamorphosis glorifying what would soon boost the street credit of Rockhurst University. The new Health and Wellness Complex, or at least the plans for its development, caught the eyes of countless students during the end of last semester, and now it appears as though the complex exists as nothing more than a faint and un-manifested memory. So, where did it go? At his Town Hall Meeting in early October, new Rockhurst President, Thomas Curran, expounded upon the missing progress of the more-than-rumored Massman Extension.

The design for the Health and Wellness Complex, approved last semester, looks to connect Massman Hall to the Convocations Center with new lobbies and several different workout areas for Rockhurst Students, and includes the addition of a new multipurpose court. All designs for the development of the new center can be viewed within the Rockhurst University website. According to the website, the new design will "knit new and existing facilities together with architectural consistency." The estimated cost of the Health and Wellness Complex was set at approximately $20 million. The Rockhurst website makes a plea for contributions to fund the new development, and such fundraising began near the end of last year when the design was approved by the Board of Trustees. As of October, roughly $2 million had been raised; an amount that is less than the amount of money needed in order for the first phase of the construction to even begin.

As detailed in the last Sentinel issue, a majority of President Curran's Town Hall Meeting was devoted to the discussion of the current financial standing at Rockhurst University. With continually growing debt and slowly reducing funds to draw from, it was fairly easy to conclude that change is most certainly needed. The President's straightforward attitude addressed this fact head on, and the change Rockhurst needs appears to have a strong foundation within Father Curran's strategy for the future. During the question and answer session of the meeting, one student, who wanted to know where progress for the complex stood, brought up the issue of the new Health and Wellness Center.

With the mounting financial strains that now confine the university, it was decided by the President, with the help of many advisors, that the construction of the new complex would be postponed somewhere between three and five years. As for the nearly $2 million in donations, that money will be frozen; reserved specifically for the Health and Wellness Complex whenever the addition's construction does begin. The President rationalized the decision by stating that, "Academic spaces and resident spaces have to take priority."

As of November 29, the Rockhurst University website is still advertising the new Health and Wellness Complex within its "Campus Developments" section, and the plea for contributions to the complex's fund similarly remains. Nowhere within the site is postponement of the project addressed. Regarding the intricate model with the miniature students, it is still missing in action, or, perhaps more accurately, missing in inaction. Hopefully the model will resurface once the University stands firmly again on its financially flimsy feet and the designs and plans will cease to be nothing more than a pretty and vague memory.

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