Miami University debuts new dining facility

When Miami University students return to campus this week, they’ll find $93 million worth of completed renovations to the East Quad of the campus, including completely renovated residence halls with new dining facilities.

That’s just one burst of a construction boom the Oxford campus has experienced in recent years, with more than $200 million of projects in various stages of completion, according to university spokeswoman Claire Wagner. But the East Quad renovations are significant because they mirror similar ones on the campus’ north side that are underway, said Matt Frericks, the director of auxiliary planning and facilities.

The East Quad renovations come in two major pieces: Garden Commons includes the new dining facilities. The residences halls have all been renovated, including Collins, Dennison, Dorsey, McBride and Symmes. The Garden Commons dining facilities are open to the public but would be most used by freshmen, Frericks said.

Part of Garden Commons had been a dining hall when Symmes Hall was built in the 1940s. In the 1990s, it became a training center, but the renovations have returned it to a dining hall, said Robert Bell, the project manager for physical facilities. It seats about 300 people.

“One of the reasons we chose to add on to this side of the building on this part of the quad was to try to attract some people beyond students,” Bell said. “It’s just much more visible and accessible. The dining facility used to be behind another residence hall.”

The dining hall includes a salad bar with a fruit bar and oatmeal and bagels available in the morning. There are also stations devoted to Asian and Italian foods, said Tina Rotundo, the executive dining manager. There is also a convenience store where visitors can pick up foods to take with them. The dining areas are divided into rooms based on seasons, with different features in each.