The grand opening of Building K on Jan. 10 marked its official transition from a restaurant to a place of learning.
The building was opened with a Sto:lo ceremony, hosted by Terrington Prest, and was attended by a number of UFV officials, including Joanne MacLean, UFV president, and Tripat Sandhu, Student Union Society president.
Paul Esposito, previous owner of Finnegan’s, attended the ceremony and spoke on the history of the establishment.
The 1.6-acre property was purchased from the Esposito family in fall 2018 for just under $10 million. Previously Finnegan’s Pub and Phoenix Ballroom, the building has now been converted to a classroom and office space to facilitate those displaced by ongoing renovations to Building A.
The building has a total of 10 classrooms, two computer labs, and a meeting room, along with several offices currently hosting criminology faculty members.
The university plans to use the building as swing space throughout the ongoing remediation projects on Building A east and Building D. Building A is estimated to be complete in September 2020, with the Building D project starting as soon as space for the displaced classes are available after the completion of Building A.
Building K had a soft opening this fall on Nov. 4. A total of 95 instructors teaching classes, 22 faculty with offices in the area, and 3,100 students were moved from Building A east to Building K as renovations in Building A started.
According to the university, Building K is the short-term plan for the newly purchased land. UFV has not announced their long-term plans for the lot.
The companies involved in the project included “Chernoff Thompson Architects; DIRTT, a manufacturer of modular walls; Chandos Construction; Williams Engineering; and Heritage Furniture,” according to UFV Today.
Image: UFV Flickr
