Students’ Union regains table booking in MacHall

By Saima Asad, November 17 2016 —

The University of Calgary Students’ Union has regained the management of table and space bookings in MacHall. They lost the booking management following their failed injunction application to maintain operational control of the building on Oct. 17. The SU regained control over the bookings during negotiations with the university in early November.

“It was one of the points in our negotiation around what the management of MacHall was going to look like,” SU vice-president operations and finance Branden Cave said. “Fortunately, we were able to resolve a misunderstanding that had occurred.”

According to Cave, if the table and space bookings remained under the university’s control, the cost of providing those bookings would have been taken out of the net proceeds that would be directed to the SU under the operational agreement following the court’s verdict.

“The SU will continue to handle bookings for table rentals and common space in MacHall. All revenues related to these activities will be collected by the SU,” the university said in a statement.

With the decision, the Shirley Anastasia Robertson lounge, the north and south courtyards and all of the tables in the MacHall food court are once again under the SU’s management. These spaces remain free for clubs to book.

“We’re very happy to be providing these services again for students and clubs,” Cave said. “The university has been very cooperative and positive.”

The SU’s table booking policies became a contested issue at the U of C on Oct. 14, when the Christian Truth Activists — an anti-LGBTQ advocacy group — booked a table in MacHall beside the Q Centre. The SU apologized for the accidental booking.