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NEWS
Food for thought
Kevin Madson, left, Cheryl King, Dr. Karen Kirtley, Marshall President Stephen Kopp, Anita Lockridge and Mark Watkins. cut the ribbon for the Grand Opening of the Food Court in the Memorial Student Center Monday, Aug. 30, 2010.
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HUNTINGTON -- It has more light and a better view around the room and out the windows, as well as new food options and a coveted Starbucks.
Those are some ingredients for pleased Marshall University students as they get into the swing of the fall semester.
Although it had a soft opening last week, Marshall and its food service provider, Sodexo, hosted a grand opening Monday morning for its newly remodeled food court in the Memorial Student Center. Samples, coupons and other goodies were handed out in celebration of the event.
The food court features new options Sub Connection, Ultimate Baja and Freshens Smoothies, as well as old favorites Pizza Hut, Chick-Fil-A, Panini's Grill and Huntington Market. Starbucks opened a cafe in the food court just before the end of the spring semester.
And the food court still has the to-go concept, as well.
"I like it," said freshman Emily Adkins of Huntington, who was sitting in Starbucks with friend Haylie Farnsworth as she enjoyed a vanilla bean Frappuccino. Adkins has an older brother at Marshall, so she was familiar with how it looked before.
"It's better, in my opinion," she said. "It's brighter and more open, and I love Starbucks. That's a plus."
Autumn Crisp and Alexis Love were enjoying Chick-Fil-A on Monday morning, and also gave the food court a thumbs up. Crisp, who eats in the food court every day, said it looks nice. And Love said she couldn't quite put her finger on how the room had changed, but said the food is good and she, too, likes that it now has a Starbucks.
"When I first came here, I was surprised that it didn't have a Starbucks," the sophomore said. "I thought every college campus had a Starbucks."
The renovation included new lighting and ceilings and a new layout. Contractors who worked on the project included: general contractor E.P. Leach & Sons; plumbing contractor Phillip S. Johnson; Dixon Electric; interior walls and ceiling contractor Giorgi of Chesapeake; Floor Management Solutions; heating and cooling control contractor Powell Inc.; fire protection contractor Brewer Co.; Edward Tucker Architects; and SBM for mechanical, electrical and plumbing designs.
Also credited for work on the project were Mark Watts, Scott Hoover, Cheryl King and Kevin Madson of Sodexo, as well as the following people with the university: President Stephen Kopp, Karen Kirtley, Ron May, Jeff Edwards, Brian Carrico, Tracy Smith and William "Tootie" Carter.
Kopp praised Sodexo and the contractors who worked on the job for the high quality of their work.
"I'm happy to see the modernization and the improvements here," he said.
