The plans for the new campus center took time to crystallize and gain enough funds. Although the Mac Weekly reported on proposed designs for the Campus Center in the fall of 1993, the center didn’t officially open its doors until January of 2001.¹

Although not all the furniture had arrived, and there were long lines for returning trays due to an error with the machine handling the trays, the Mac Weekly reported that the reaction from students on opening day was mostly positive. Students enjoyed having a new place to socialize, especially after the long wait for the building to open.² And, they appreciated the better food options— at least, for now. One student told the Mac Weekly that “the food has been really good so far, but it’s not supposed to stay that way.”³

However, the swanky new amenities also led to unexpected consequences— with an attractive new building on campus, a larger class than expected committed to Macalester the following year, and more juniors and seniors were enticed to live on campus, all of which resulted in an on-campus housing crunch during the 2002 room draw.⁴ This increased interest in living on campus showed that the Campus Center was on track to become the new social hub for a more unified campus. The functions of the dining hall and the student union were consolidated into a new central location.

Throughout Macalester’s history, buildings like the Student Union, Kagin Commons, and the Campus Center, have helped to define the social scene of the college. Early on, the smaller capacity of the Student Union and its inability to serve all the students on campus reflected the persisting divisions between male and female students, who still lived separately. Later on, the additions of Kagin Commons and the Campus Center represented the college’s shift towards a more unified campus, with places where all students could gather.