Sports History Landmark Bought Out; To Be Renovated

Only loosely related to sports, but pretty related to the staff of this esteemed website.

From the official Marquette University press release...
Marquette purchases building at 12th and Wells
Marquette University has purchased the Newbridge Apartments at the corner of 12th and Wells. The transaction was completed last week, at a reasonable cost. Marquette’s location, the changing dynamics of university life and the desire to enhance the campus environment make it prudent for the university to monitor property opportunities in our campus area. The Newbridge became available for purchase and presented an opportunity to solidify the campus’s northern border. The current plan is to leave the property vacant, because it will be easier to make major renovations if funding becomes available. Students who signed leases for the apartments have been offered housing in other properties owned by the seller or in university housing. While the building houses Jim Hegarty’s Pub, 1120 W. Wells St., the pub will continue to be owned by St. James Estates and will remain open. In the context of the university’s overall long-term planning, there is always discussion about multiple projects, new initiatives and general growth that require additional space.

Should renovations be undertaken, it will most likely mean a total overhaul of the building that is really just north of squalor, and the complete loss of the tough-as-nails identity and character for one of the great forums of sports discussion...The Establishment.

For one glorious and alcohol-fueled year, three of the current YCS staff writers inhabited this building in a simple three-bedroom sub-ground level apartment and remarkably paid less than $400 in rent each. The rest of the staff were frequent visitors. It was here that such great epic sports discussion battles as "Chicago Preliminary Olympic Plans v. Mass Chaos," "Kyle Orton v. Suck," "Sport v. Not-a-sport," "Iain's Arm v. Wall," and "Kyle Orton v. Suck II" were decided. It was also the host facility of the 2006 Beer Olympics , where the "Slipup in Flipcup" gave Team USA the gold, thus preventing Team Ireland from sweeping the Golds. Team Latvia finished a shameful third.

If Marquette chooses to renovate the apartments into bland, squeaky-clean, fun-free freshman dorms or something like that, that's fine. However, please kindly preserve The Establishment as a museum for posterity, to show what the perfect mixture of Jaegermeister, sports debate, 2AM Mortal Kombat, and gross neglect for basic sanitation can do to make our world a better place.