The Miner Alumni Association has purchased the old Uptown Theater and the law offices of Smith and Turley on Pine Street for the site of the future Hasselmann Alumni House. The association will take full possession on Feb. 14. Using private donations, the association plans to complete the 8,000-square-foot facility by 2012. A ground-breaking ceremony will be held at the site at 3 p.m. Friday, April 23.
The house will give returning alumni, faculty, staff and current students a place to gather for alumni celebrations, dinner gatherings before sports events, concerts and lectures, and will host key student events like graduation and convocation receptions. The house will include a meeting and dining hall, a media lounge, an alumni library and archives, courtyards and gardens, as well as offices for the alumni staff.
The building will be named in honor of 1925 graduate Karl Hasselmann, whose gifts over the years have provided support for scholarships, research and facility construction. A gift of mineral rights from Hasselmann, a pioneer in offshore oil exploration, funded the purchase of the properties.