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What Should be Offered in the Commons?

By Chloé Margulis
Staff Writer

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear about Hillwood Commons? It could be The End Zone—an addition to Hillwood that minimized space for extra seating—or the blasting music during common hour, or the layout of the fishbowl that gives it it’s attractive retro name. To me, two infamous f-words come to mind: food and friends. Hillwood is the place to be to catch a quick bite, to meet with friends, or simply just to hang out.

I can’t deny that Hillwood has great food, but perhaps a little more variety would spike people’s interest and quell the grumbling tummies of busy students. We all know the line for Subway goes out the door an hour before common hour even starts. But, if we allocate more of our budget towards healthier foods—instead of spending more money on the candy store and boutique—and some popular American food chains, everyone would be happier. I am not saying we need a McDonalds, but perhaps we can create a stand where, once or twice a week, Moe’s comes to Post, instead of all of us haggling each other for a ride to the closest Moe’s. And, we wouldn’t even have to stop there! Every month we could bring in a different food chain or local restaurant, café, etc.

On another note, maybe it’s time to “remodel” the candy store and boutique. In other words, change the merchandise to practical, reasonably priced goods that students would actually want to purchase. Most of the student body will tell you that they find these campus stores pointless and overpriced, all the more reason to move on to different storefronts. A cool idea would be to transform one of these shops into a mini convenience store that is open 24/7. I noticed that on campus, the bookstore does offer a limited selection of little last minute things, but it is only open on weekdays and not 24/7. If you would ever need some pens, Tylenol, soft drinks, or little chocolate bars to keep you going during midnight study sessions, a little convenience store in Hillwood Commons could always be open.

Another cool addition to Hillwood Commons would be to bring back a quiet room stocked with computers and printers. This is the first semester at LIU where the computer room no longer exists. But ask a student and they’ll say they want that computer room back for its convenience. No more treks to the library during the last stretch of common hour to print something for a class only minutes later—a class you’ll surely be late for if you have to make a pit stop at the library first.

You see, there are endless possibilities to improve Hillwood reasonably. Hillwood should retain its standard as a place to “chill,” rather than morphing it into a mini Roosevelt Field Mall. Franchises like the boutique are cool add-ons at first, but as time wears on, the student body doesn’t find a purpose for an overly priced clothing store, and all that merchandise doesn’t result in net profit for LIU Post. That room might just possibly see better days as a niche to do homework and print out assignments, just as the candy shop would be more successful as a 24/7 “All You Need” mini convenience store.

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