The Memorial Union is using the summer to renovate its facilities.

The food court, University Book Store and the Great Hall are receiving the bulk of the attention. The Union food court is already closed for remodeling and will not re-open until August, although Subway and Panda Express remain open for the summer.

Nearby, the University Book Store is in phase one of its renovations with a south addition already in use, said manager Lynette Seymour.

Phase two will involve the re-opening of the old art department and textbook section, farthest from the current entrance, and the closing of the offices and front of the store for remodeling.

Gail Ferlazzo, associate director of the Memorial Union, said renovations to the Great Hall began April 23, and remodeling of the Oak Room, Sun Room and South Ballroom are in the works.

ISU Dining’s $275,000 project – in addition to the food court renovations – involves the eventual merging and relocation of Onion’s C-Store and the MU Cafe, both of which will remain open separately for the summer, said Nancy Levandowski, director of campus dining. She said the venues are expected to open as one in fall 2008.

Levandowski said within the food court, Sunset Strips will remain and be given a more central location. Fresh Burrito Works will also be returning. Soon to join these venues is burger option Cy’s & Fries, named by contest-winner Michael Paulsen, senior in marketing, which will feature burgers made from fresh – not frozen – beef, as well as french fries and vegetarian options. The new World Bistro will offer greater variety with a rotational menu including pizza, gyros, and other home-style meal options similar to what now-defunct Hearthstone once offered.

University Book Store, when renovations are complete, will have nearly doubled in square footage, said Seymour. In addition, it will benefit from greater accessibility by way of a south entrance off Lincoln Way, directly from the Memorial Union parking ramp.

This parking ramp entrance will also improve the accessibility of the ballrooms under construction, Ferlazzo said. The Great Hall, Oak Room, Sun Room and South Ballroom will offer improved accessibility via a coming public access corridor, which will lead directly from the parking ramp she said.

Ferlazzo said beyond accessibility, renovations to the ballrooms will include new sprinklers and updated fire protection, refinished floors, replaced windows, modernized acoustics and a new coat of paint.

Ferlazzo said the Oak Room will likely be out of commission for most of the fall semester, but she anticipates public access to the Great Hall by late September and to the other rooms in early September, pointing out the Great Hall will take longer because it will be most heavily renovated.

More than $20 million will be spent on these rooms, mainly coming from student fees, said Ferlazzo. The Great Hall will be paid for by money donated privately.

All of the renovations seem to have been long-expected. Levandowski said changes to the food court are being made in response to student and faculty frustration with the old organization, as assessed by yearly surveys conducted for ISU Dining.

These surveys helped officials pinpoint the weaknesses in their products and services and plan for the reorganization, designed to improve the product variety and speed of service, first and foremost.

Seymour said the bookstore was simply undersized relative to the size of the university, and the increase in size will help continue the store’s gradual shift from the service-oriented to the retail-minded.

Meanwhile, Ferlazzo said accessibility was a factor leading to the decision to renovate the ballrooms, but added that aesthetics definitely played a role as well in the decision-making process.