When third-year microbiology, immunology and molecular genetics
student Jieshan Lin makes it to UCLA in the mornings, he’s
usually stuck on campus all day ““ it’s too inconvenient
to drive back to his Sepulveda Boulevard home between classes.
Most days, Lin kills time before his next class by camping out
in one of the study lounges on campus, especially the Ackerman
Viewpoint Lounge, where students commonly study, relax or take
power naps.
So when Lin made his usual walk to the Viewpoint Lounge on
Tuesday morning, hoping to spend his free time preparing a pre-lab
for his afternoon chemistry class, he was startled to find that the
X-Cape Arcade had replaced the study area.
Other students like Lin may have noticed X-Cape’s change
of venue from its former location near the Cooperage to the room
previously known as the Viewpoint Lounge.
The arcade has been relocated in preparation for Jamba
Juice’s arrival in spring quarter.
The Associated Students UCLA first developed the plan to bring
Jamba Juice to Ackerman at the beginning of the 2002-2003 school
year.
Now the construction for the smoothie vendor ““ which will
replace the services provided by Tropix in the first-floor Ackerman
food court ““ will begin in a matter of days, said Jerry Mann,
the director of the ASUCLA student union and student support
services.
The venue for the new Jamba Juice will be fairly unique, in that
it will include a lounge area in addition to the typical Jamba
Juice store configuration, Mann said.
This lounge area will be separated from the counter and the
store’s tables by some physical demarcation, such as a
railing, but will not be removed from the Jamba Juice area by a
wall.
Students have expressed concern that the noise created by Jamba
Juice may eliminate the lounge as a possible study area.
For students like Lin, the loss of a quiet study space in
Ackerman removes another option from what is already a dearth of
possibilities.
“There are so few study lounges on campus, and most of
them are so crowded that it seems a shame they’re removing
one of them,” Lin said.
With the noise of X-Cape in the background, students who need
absolute quiet when studying may find that the A-level lounge of
Ackerman is not the place to go anymore.
“If I wanted a quiet place to study, I wouldn’t come
to Ackerman. I’d go to Powell,” said third-year biology
student Taera Robbins.
But Lin feels that Powell is not as ideal a place to study as
the Viewpoint Lounge once was.
“I never study in Powell because it’s always so
crowded and I can never find space,” Lin said.
If a quiet place to study or sleep is what students are looking
for, there are other study lounges available to students ““
such as those in Kerckhoff Hall and on the third floor of Ackerman,
Mann said.
“We’re also hoping the design of the Jamba Juice
lounge will incorporate some treatment to help mitigate the
sound,” he said.
As part of this design, the new Jamba Juice will not have any
noisy entertainment, such as televisions or music. Mann expects
this reduction in noise will create a quieter atmosphere.
Regulars and occasional visitors of the X-Cape Arcade have also
expressed regret that the arcade was moved to a more brightly lit
area.
“The new X-Cape room has too much light,” said Carey
Shenkman, a first-year business economics student.
Lin, who comes to play games at X-Cape once or twice a week,
also said the new location seems misplaced.
“It’s just not the right arcade atmosphere. The
light from the windows keeps hitting the screens and producing
glares that can be really irritating,” Lin said.
For now, the X-Cape Arcade will remain where it is, though it is
uncertain for how long. The fate of the arcade rests in its
performance over the next few months.
“We will either keep the arcade or remove it, depending on
how successful the arcade is in the Viewpoint Lounge,” Mann
said. “The ASUCLA board of directors may make the decision to
relocate it, remove it or keep it.”