Gerts, McGill’s campus bar, reopened to the public on Jan. 6 after spending the Fall semester with shuttered doors. Located in the basement of the University Centre, Gerts served its last beer on April 26, 2024, before closing for over eight months due to problems with its electrical system and management structure.
Despite delays in reopening, the 50-year-old student bar is fully operational again. The Gerts Café, which used to occupy the same space as the bar, has been slated to relocate to the main floor of the University Centre.
The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) executive team wrote to The Tribune explaining that infrastructure problems and difficulties with Gerts’ management arrangement were the main reasons for the bar’s closure last semester.
“Gerts was initially closed due to changes in the management structure that made hiring for new managers necessary, as well as newly identified issues pertaining to purchasing new furniture and equipment and the electrical system in the Gerts bar area that required moving the café upstairs,” the executives wrote.
After Gerts’ management was reconfigured, the staff hiring process continued throughout the entirety of the Fall semester, and contractors began carrying out renovations.
Former SSMU Vice-President (VP) Operations and Sustainability Meg Baltes helped coordinate Gerts’ renovation and eventual reopening throughout the fall. This involved sourcing higher-quality furniture for the bar and replacing aging equipment for the well-loved hub of student life.
“A significant amount of effort was put into predicting future issues and accounting for them during our renovations and restructurings [….] There were definitely hiccups in the reopening, as any bar will face, but most of these were due to delays in working with third-party service providers,” Baltes wrote to The Tribune. “We are [in] a McGill building, so we are not allowed to modify the building ourselves and [renovations] must operate on Facilities Management and Ancillary Services’ timeframe.”
The position of VP Operations and Sustainability, which is responsible for managing Gerts, sits vacant following Baltes’ resignation effective Dec. 13. Though a by-election was held to fill the position, its results were nullified after it failed to reach the required 15 per cent quorum. However, SSMU executives remain confident this vacancy will not affect Gerts’ operations in the coming semester.
“This vacancy has no impact on the funding or operations of Gerts. Management of Gerts is stable independent of the VP’s role being filled, as the Gerts Bar Manager and Gerts Cafe Manager report to the Student Life Operations (SLO) Director, who is a full-time employee of the SSMU,” the SSMU executive team wrote to The Tribune.
As part of SSMU’s SLO department, Gerts is owned and operated by SSMU. As a result, Gerts does not have to pay rent, nor does it have to maintain its own communications team or HR division, and the bar receives funding from student fees.
“Gerts does not receive direct funding in the form of a specific amount from the SSMU; however, Gerts staff, like any SLO staff, are paid by the SSMU and any losses incurred by Gerts are covered by the SSMU,” the executive team told The Tribune.
Leo Ortega, U3 Arts, enjoyed a beer with his friends on Gerts’ opening night, excited to see the bar reopened.
“I think it’s a good use of SSMU money,” Ortega told The Tribune. “You don’t really have any community spaces on campus, this is the closest we have to that. Bands play here, people meet up here. I think it’s something that was lacking over the last semester.”
Baltes was also optimistic about the semester to come.
“[Gerts] spans generations as a staple of the campus, with many alumni visiting, telling the bartenders about old Gerts stories from decades ago,” she wrote. “I am happy that the SSMU has been able to support this institution and bring it back to students in full force this semester.”
