by Caleb Fort
Daily Lobo
Rachel Kaub, radio operations manager at KUNM, said the station's studios used to resemble an aging dormitory.
"Until this renovation we had a men's room with a shower and sinks," she said.
The reopening of the studio took place Saturday. KUNM employees and volunteers gave the public tours of the updated facilities.
Kaub said although there was a celebration of the reopening, the renovation is not entirely complete.
"The walls themselves are done," she said. "But there's still some rewiring to be done, and I expect we'll be tweaking over the next year."
O§ate Hall, which houses the studios, used to be a dormitory. Walls were rearranged to make rooms bigger and an updated fire alarm was installed.
The renovation also includes doors large enough for wheelchairs and wheelchair ramps were added throughout the building.
However, Kaub said they hope to go beyond the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. She said the station might try to get a large portion of its approximately 70,000 CDs and records in digital format so they are more easily accessible to handicapped people.
"Anyone with the time, desire and basic skills should be able to come up here and help, regardless of any specific disability they might have," she said.
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The $700,000 renovation began in May 2004.
Richard Towne, general manager, said $350,000 came from foundation donations, $50,000 from the state government, $42,000 from UNM and $15,000 from student fees. He said the rest came from personal donations.
Student Doug Ligare said the renovation was a better use of student fees than many other construction projects.
"I'm feeling a lot better about this renovation than the SUB renovation," he said.
Student Joelle Ingram said she did not even know KUNM existed, and added that she should not have to help pay for a renovation she will not benefit from.
"I don't use it, so maybe there's a lot of other students who also don't use it," she said.
Student Jennifer Schneider said she rarely listens to KUNM, but did not mind helping pay for the renovation. However, she said if students are helping pay for the station, they should play more student-friendly content like alternative rock or indie bands.
"I think that the money should have gone to help renovate it," she said. "But I think it could be more student-oriented."
Schneider said the music and the talk shows played on KUNM do not appeal to her.
"It seems like it's focused toward an older audience," she said. "The times that I've listened, it doesn't have anything students would want to listen to."
Kaub said KUNM is an educational asset to the University.
"KUNM provides not only work study opportunities, but training opportunities as well," she said.
Kaub said the station gives students a chance to learn how to operate professional audio equipment.
Towne said the station has 15 full-time employees and about 180 students and volunteers who work there.
Kaub said the station's goal is to be able to serve as large a portion of the community as possible, whether they are listeners or volunteers.
Ligare said he did not understand what would make a good studio, but KUNM deserves all the support it can get.
"I don't have a deep understanding of what they're able to do now that they couldn't do before," he said. "But KUNM plays a fairly large role in my life."
