WKU President Timothy Caboni told the Board of Regents that the university will not restore the interior of Cherry Hall to “a classroom building built to serve the campus in 1936; it wouldn’t serve our students, and it wouldn’t serve the way they learn today.”
Caboni’s comments come after the university shared renderings for the renovation of Cherry Hall last week, prompting the WKU community to express disapproval of the planned changes on social media and campus.
“We’ve had a group of faculty and staff working for over a year, and none of these decisions were made in a vacuum,” Caboni said at the Regents’ committee meeting on Thursday. “Our north star was focused on how to maintain the character of the building and its significance to our community.”
Caboni addressed various disapprovals that he said were raised following the release of the plans. Caboni specifically said the front of the building will not be destroyed, the statue of former WKU President Henry Hardin Cherry would not be removed, a Starbucks will not be implemented, the marble staircase will remain untouched and there will be more classroom space following the renovation than before.
The Herald reached out to University Spokesperson Jace Lux for the source of the complaints Caboni cited. Lux did not respond before publication.
“Some of the critiques and concerns that I’ve seen and have been shared with me, I don’t know where they come from,” Caboni said. “They’re not based on the renderings we’ve provided or any of the comments that we’ve made about the renovation.”
Many comments expressed by the community stress a loss of history and character within the building’s renovation plans, with protesters chalking messages around Cherry Hall, saying, “Cherry Hall deserves better” and “try again WKU.”
Caboni emphasized the need for renovating Cherry Hall, saying $35 million of the total $75 million put toward its renovation and restoration could have been used on interior areas of the building, like HVAC, where people “would never know.”
“The university’s president would never allow the destruction of our most iconic facility,” Caboni said. “I am certain that you will be proud when this project is over and what we’ve created for another generation of Hilltoppers to experience Cherry (Hall).”
Caboni declined to comment to the Herald further regarding the concerns raised about Cherry Hall following the board’s committee meeting.
