History of the Hub

OrionsBelt

Ok i know kinda weird title. Just wondering what all the different rooms were before they were what they are now. Like, before they turned it into the nuBar, what was in that spot, and i know there was a whole bunch of stuff up where they stupidly gave away to be the english school.

And while we're on the subject, are there any other buildings that used to be something else. I know pharmacy was the old library

Diarmsquid

OrionsBelt wrote: »

Ok i know kinda weird title. Just wondering what all the different rooms were before they were what they are now. Like, before they turned it into the nuBar, what was in that spot, and i know there was a whole bunch of stuff up where they stupidly gave away to be the english school.

And while we're on the subject, are there any other buildings that used to be something else. I know pharmacy was the old library

Well before the X-box room, that room was the seminar room. A nice free space that societies used. General purpose in a way. I remember stumbling across some fun Art Soc, Game Soc and Film Soc meet ups there. It was also used for Union Council and a couple of outside seminars, like USIT.

I'm not in DCU that long, but that's my contribution for now..

public_enemy

Well the New Bar was always a bar of sorts, at least as far as I can recall it always served alcohol - but it was originally intended to be more of a cafe. If you check the DCU website you can see it's still referred to there as "The Hub Coffee Shop".

The round room upstairs in the Hub was used for something in the old days and the Den once had lots (8?) of properly looked after pool tables and couches.

Oh and the USIT office was once an actual USIT office.

Cy_Revenant

As already said, the Xbox room was once a general purpose seminar room used mainly by societies.

As far as I know, the venue has been largely unchanged since the hub opened.

The Nubar, used to be the New Bar. It was a café bar open until about 5 or 6 in the evening and served food all day. More than just the burger and chips you get now, they served soup and more.

The Old Bar used to be open all day. They served hot food too.

The round room upstairs by the Den used to be a second hand bookstore, I believe.

ldxo15wus6fpgm

Where IS the xbox room?

Attol

Upstairs in the Hub. You can get to it through the Students' Union reception.

decob

OrionsBelt wrote: »

and i know there was a whole bunch of stuff up where they stupidly gave away to be the english school.

Still can't believe that has happend.. but anyway... when it first opened

Old bar was just that, the old bar with the pool tables out in the conservatory
New bar - was a second bar, did the likes of coffee and cakes in the eaerly am, and used to served carvary lunches, used to close then early in evening unless there was an event on. Used to have steel outdoor tables and hard plastic chairs - but wasn't the nicest place to be dirinking beer in - too bright and sterile.
The venue was the venue

Upstairs contained was the clubs and socs area and meeting rooms, next was the SU offices and their reception area and the seminar room.

The circuar room was empty for a long time as different people had different views as to what it should be... some people fancied it as their office. The rest of the space above the spar was retails and office - usit,

There was a print bureau in the office space above the book shop (if that is still there)

robby^5

Back in the day it used to be a student centre. Today it's closer to a shopping centre.

Bluetonic

Cy_Revenant wrote: »

The Nubar, used to be the New Bar. It was a café bar open until about 5 or 6 in the evening and served food all day. More than just the burger and chips you get now, they served soup and more.

Of course you can still get soup in the NuBar, it's not just burger and chips. There are a few pasta dished too, amongst others.

Art_Wolf

I think the Old Bar, Nubar and the Venue had previous names alpha, beta and gamma or at least vague recollection of seeing those symbols as signs above the doors *shrugs*

robby^5

Art_Wolf wrote: »

I think the Old Bar, Nubar and the Venue had previous names alpha, beta and gamma or at least vague recollection of seeing those symbols as signs above the doors *shrugs*

Yeah I remember them (or possible just the unpainted outline of the signs post-removal) back in my first year. I guess it never caught on.

lithiumoxide

robby^5 wrote: »

Yeah I remember them (or possible just the unpainted outline of the signs post-removal) back in my first year. I guess it never caught on.

Aye that'd be right. They used to be called the Alpha and Beta Bars (The Venue was Gamma). The symbols were still up when I started, but I think people had just started calling them the Old and New Bars at that stage (maybe within the year or two before?)

There was a second-hand bookshop just above the now-DCUfm studio. There was also a USIT office and a barbershop up beside it, through the doors opposite the Campus Print office, which used to be Xerox! That area also had pool tables. It was grand.

Anyone recall what was in the space DCUfm is in now?

tomar-re

I think the DCUfm space has been for a radio station for years. There was a radio station during my first year that was **** but happened I think. There was a "decent" radio station there before that too but that could have been in the wild days before we left USI.

myk

A long time ago the Old Bar used to be called Frodo's. It had pre-Jackson movie paintings of scenes from the books up around it. The name and theme was ditched just in time for the movies and when Lord of the Rings became cool again.

I would comment on the use of the rest of the HUB between 2000 and 2004, but as I don't know how it is used now I wouldn't be able to tell the differences.

Art_Wolf

The Clubs and Socs storage room lost about 1/3 of the room for a new area in the pool area where lockers were put in.

The outdoor area for the NuBar is new too isn't it? I'm not sure if the two levels within the NuBar was created at the same time - I know they spent a fair bit on the floor *shurgs*

Cy_Revenant

Art_Wolf wrote: »

The Clubs and Socs storage room lost about 1/3 of the room for a new area in the pool area where lockers were put in.

That entire section of the building is now gone.

Classrooms for DCU*LS

myk

Art_Wolf wrote: »

The Clubs and Socs storage room lost about 1/3 of the room for a new area in the pool area where lockers were put in.

The outdoor area for the NuBar is new too isn't it? I'm not sure if the two levels within the NuBar was created at the same time - I know they spent a fair bit on the floor *shurgs*

I think the NuBar always had two levels.... *scratches head*

Art_Wolf

ah then it might have been something like they put lots of money into tiling it or such

tomar-re

I think the only money spent was on doing up the awning outside and the seating. The nubar hasn't changed much since I started way back when.

public_enemy

I think the TVs are relatively new, the one in the Venue is certainly. When it became the main bar they carpeted the upstairs part of the Venue and added a TV and furniture there in an effort to increase the bar's capacity. I'm not sure if it's still used for that purpose, it led to a lot of folks opening the fire doors to get people in without going by the bouncers.

Oh and the pool table downstairs in the New Bar wasn't always there, they moved it down from the Den.

H2G2

If you want to go way back in history... before they built the Hub section, The spar shop used to be a mall of sorts, with USIT travel, Bookshop, shop, print shop and upstairs was SU offices and pool room. And way before the old bar was called Frodo's, it was a bit smaller and used to be fun. As I recall the bar/shop area was built in 1991.