By Maddy Slot
UCR Class of 2016
“Let’s take a break”, says the professor as you feel your eyes closing and your head drop. You quickly grab your wallet and walk out the door and down the street, eager for coffee. One minute later, you are already ordering from one of your fellow schoolmates. Shortly after, you have a hot cup in your hand, ready to continue class. Elliott, the place where you can recharge after a long night of studying, where you can relax, do homework, or spend time with your friends, the place where you have crazy nights and where you can recover the next morning. How did this all come about?
Since the first board was elected in April of 2012, students have been working non-stop to give the UCR community a place to get a sandwich and grab a coffee, and to create a comfortable place to study. The idea of having our very own common house had been around for a while, but it was not until the spring of 2012 when the idea was turned into a plan of action. There was hope that the new Common House would be finished for all students to enjoy within a year, yet financial and operational setbacks made the board members unsure about when Elliott could open, and if it could open at all. After signing a contract with Hartman B.V. to place the Common House in the old post-office building, the complaints started pouring in from all corners of Middelburg.
The main source of disagreement was the bar in the basement of Elliott. The neighborhood did not want a bar in their vicinity, and decided to take legal action. The Elliott board has spent many days in court fighting to open the Common House and has won every case thus far. The bar could not be compromised, not only due to the fact that it was one of the major attractions of Elliott, but also because of the revenue the bar would generate. Without it, costs would be too high to sustain.
Alongside the development of Elliott, individuals and groups from different campus locations have raised money through fundraising projects. Who could forget the hitchhiking competition, going all the way from Brugesback to Middelburg in a matter of days, or the Halloween party in the hooizolder, or the sponsor run? And who could forget the “Bachelor/ Bachelorette Xperience” when the 2nd floor Koestraat men decided to strip for Elliot? The fundraisers helped Elliott immensely and they were able to raise over ten thousand Euros, enabling them to open Elliot for the very first party: “At least it’s something”.
In November of 2013, Elliott held its first party. There was a makeshift bar and the space was unfinished, but that did not stop the students from partying it up in the basement in future party area of Elliott. Shortly after this, the new bar arrived after a contract had been signed with Bavaria in October of 2013. From then on the development of the ground floor of Elliott accelerated with the first Crostini sandwich leaving the building in March 2014. In addition to sandwiches, Elliott started offering coffees, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, and hot meals. The first board of Elliott may not have achieved exactly what they set out to do, but the plan of opening Elliott has come true through the work of the second and third boards, elected in 2012 and 2013 respectively. Now the new board, elected in April of this year, is looking toward the future.
The future plans for Elliott involve opening classrooms and enhancing the study area and dining hall to make sure all UCR students have an enjoyable and comfortable academic and social life. According to Solya Luchechko, Elliott’s new event manager, the plan is to organize more events, not just parties. The opening week of Elliott was a great indicator of what will be planned in the future. The aim is to bring the Common House to life, and make “Elliott the center of UCR student’s social and academic life”. As a sneak peak of what events could be planned, Solya states that events might even be planned for the coming Introweek.
With the abundance of enthusiasm of the new board and the great plans that have been developed for the future, Elliott can become the center of student life and fulfill all the hopes of the preceding boards. Stay tuned.
Maddy Slot, class of 2016, is an Art History and Literature major from Eindhoven, the Netherlands.
*Elliott.