By Ileana Angulo
Senior Reporter
Along with the New Year came the addition of modernized residential housing at California State University, Bakersfield.
Approximately 400 students are being housed in the facility. But many students are asking why a dining hall wasn’t built alongside the residential facility?
Without one available, students must resort to the Runner Café for their meals. Some are having a hard time adjusting to the transition.
“Being closer was more convenient; now we have to walk all the way there,” said Jiselle Zuniga, freshman housing resident.
In order to accommodate students, hours have been extended at the Runner Café, Rowdy’s, Peet’s and Walter’s. Students are given a variety of meal options to choose from.
One option being an all you can eat buffet style.
This was a previous option at The Commons.
Therese Dozier, Coordinator of conference and transition specialist said, “The hours have been expanded just for dorm students we expanded meal service with University Grill. Some meals have options from all you can eat to different kind of plan.”
Also, there will be daily specials and varieties of daily meal deals students can pick from. Meal plans and dining dollars will be usable at all four locations.
The purpose is to offer students a variety of options and to facilitate getting food. Despite extended hours David Hveem, Aramark food service director at CSUB said additional staff was not hired.
Instead staff employed at The Commons was relocated at the Runner Café. Additional staff was needed to make the process of serving students and staff faster. To minimize wait time, an additional register was added for students getting meals from the grab and go food section.
Students have been complaining about the wait time and amount of people trying to get food at once especially during lunch time.
Chase Hicks, freshman housing resident said, “Sometimes it gets really chaotic and you can’t get in and out.”
In response to student complaints Hveem said, “You go anywhere during peak lunch hours you will wait a long time; whether it’s sit in, fast food or not, you’ll wait.”
He also said the average wait time per student is ten minutes but at times wait time is self inflicted.
“What I notice is students walk in talk with friends, text, socialize and then they order. If you go straight to food station it would be faster. It’s not the case with all students but more often than not,” said Hveem.
In addition, he added that President Horace Mitchell had the longest wait time on record, with a wait time of approximately 17 minutes. Since more students are expected at the Runner Café, seating has been expanded with the addition of the Stockdale room.
The housing facility is a long term project which consists of five phases. Currently, phase 1, which was the construction of a residential hall with the capacity of 500 beds, has been completed.
Dr. Thomas Wallace said in phase 2 or 3 a dining hall will be built, “As soon as we look to our numbers and look at capacity we will begin planning as soon as we get to that point based on the needs of our students if we see a need we will begin planning sooner rather than later.”
