Monday marked the beginning of Phase II for renovations to the Harter Union.

The union’s lobby will be closed to faculty, staff and students during the entire semester as contractors build a coffee bar and add three study room to the east wall of the building.

“We want it open by alumni weekend (in May) and we want to do the dedication then,” University President Pat Long said. “We are under a very tight turnaround, so unfortunately for students, it will be closed. For our returning students, I think it will be a good thing.”

The project received a $1 million donation in December, which moved the project forward, but the university is still short $1.3 million to finish the full renovation.

“We’re seeing a lot of people step up and really want to be part of this campaign, so I just anticipate that it’s going to happen,” Long said. “We have so many people that are so generous that really want to see something good for our students.”

The remaining funds necessary for Phase II will go toward renovating the Student Affairs offices and an outdoor veranda.

The coffee bar, which will be run through Sodexo, will serve sandwiches and pastries in addition to various beverages. Although the university has not set exact hours, Long believes the coffee bar will be open well into the evening.

“This will be the space where I see that students will kind of hang out and connect. I see that as the gathering space,” Long said. “The dinning hall has been so successful, and quite honestly, I wondered if we needed to even redo the lounge because it’s been so successful.”