The Grove Caffe dropped a’ request for $13,750 in events funding from the Associated Students at last week’s council meeting. Members of the cafe’s advisory committee instead submitted a unanimously approved request for $300 to fund Deejay Thursdays.
The indebted cafe hopes to build its customer base and avoid further financial setback with the new event, hosted by the Deejay and Vinylphiles Club. The event also features a $2 hot dog and beverage deal.
The request was sponsored by Associate Vice President of Student Enterprises Chelsea Maxwell, who said that funding Deejay Thursdays for the remaining weeks of Winter Quarter would amount to a cost of $600, half of which will be provided by University Centers.’
The funds will go to DVC, money which the organization will put toward the purchase of new equipment and the funding of annual events such as popular rave Let’s Bounce.
Grove managers, in conjunction with A.S. Council representatives, decided to abandon their original request after receiving vocal protest from councilmembers hesitant to provide any further funding to the enterprise, especially without a coherent long-term plan for its programming ventures.
The Grove is now an estimated $109,214 in debt and has failed to report any significant profit over the last several months, a situation that Grove managers are seeking to amend by increasing visibility.
According to Vice President of Finance and Resources Naasir Lakhani, who serves on the council’s Grove Advisory Board, councilmembers will vote on whether to provide an additional $1,000 to the Grove in order to sustain Deejay Thursdays for the rest of the academic year during tenth week of this quarter.
‘Ograve;We were looking at options for what would be a cheaper way to get attention over to the old Student Center,’ Lakhani said. ‘Ograve;Part of the problem with the $13,000 request was that the events were too varied and they didn’t have a common time and place.’
Lakhani said he hopes that Deejay Thursdays, held for the first time last week, will attract attention not only to the Grove but to all the surrounding student-run businesses.
‘Ograve;Hopefully, this event will serve as a stepping stone for future events to happen at the old Student Center,’ Lakhani said. ‘Ograve;I don’t want to see that part of campus just become a bunch of Hi Thais and McDonald’s and Burger Kings. I’d like to keep it student run. So hopefully this will be one of the many things that will get people over to that part of campus.’
Grove student manager Autumn Hays said she expects Deejay Thursdays to inject new life into the cafe and its Student Center community.
‘Ograve;It brings attention to the Grove and creates the kind of unique atmosphere we want here,’ Hays said. ‘Ograve;This place is for the students, run by the students and ‘Ntilde; to put it simply ‘Ntilde; it’s a great place to hang out. It’s relaxed, friendly and stays strong to the ideas of community and what the students of UCSD want to create here on campus. We and our fellow stores and shops in the student center are working to keep that feeling alive.’
DJVC President Adam Timmerberg said his deejays will attempt to exude the cafe’s laid-back atmosphere in their weekly performances.
‘Ograve;It’ll be pretty much just low energy, relaxed music,’ Timmerberg said. ‘Ograve;People are there drinking coffee, having meetings, smoking cigarettes, and we want to match that vibe and go along with it.’
Readers can contact Reza Farazmand at [email protected].