Renovations to Jefferson Market will include late-night dining options and a “Whole Foods store” concept area.
When construction is completed to Jefferson Hall and Jefferson Market, they likely won’t resemble anything close to what upperclassmen remember as the place they stumbled to for Jeff Brunch on the weekends or the place the wok was once located.
The new market will include a “Whole Foods” concept kitchen area, a demonstration cooking area, coffee and tea shops, said Christine Sheets, assistant vice president for Student Affairs.
The new market will also include a separate dining area with longer hours.
“Students will be able to come in in the evening and purchase a pre-prepared meal,” she said.
The university expects the renovations to be completed by 2016, Assistant Director of Auxiliary Sales Dan Pittman said.
The total budget for the project is $44 million, according to university documents. Of that, $36 million will be funded through Housing Reserves. The rest will be funded through Culinary Reserves.
Pittman said the university chose a “marketplace-like” environment over a dining hall because of low participation at Jefferson Dining Hall in previous years. During spring semester of 2013, Jefferson Dining Hall served an average of 700 meals per day, he said, while during the same time, Shively Court was providing 4,200 meals in a single day.
“Our current plans involve creating a marketplace-like experience that is unlike any other of Culinary Services’ current locations,” Pittman said. “Recent benchmarking feedback and our analysis of national trends support such a direction.”
The residence hall will be remodeled to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, according to university documents.
Construction to Boyd Dining Hall will be completed in July and will open at the beginning of Fall Semester, said Richard Schultz, interim associate Vice President for architecture, design and construction.
“The overall theme for the renovated space (at Boyd) is ‘micro-restaurants’in which students and guests can enjoy a variety of fresh, healthy foods within multiple environments that offer a different experience with each visit,” Pittman said.
@AlxMeyer
am095103@ohio.edu
