UNM administrators have named the restaurants that will fill the SUB, as well as the project's new completion date of July 1 - one that administrators say they are confident will be met.
Walt Miller, associate vice president of UNM Student Development, said the eight SUB eateries will offer a variety of food including everything from the super healthy to french fries and hamburgers.
"We wanted to provide a good mix of the traditional restaurants that were successful in the old SUB as well as new, innovative choices that will surely please all of our consumers," he said.
The new restaurants that have been contracted to open franchises in the SUB include Sonic, Chick-fil-A and Zia Juice.
Miller said some of the old favorites that have been brought back are Casita, a New Mexican-style food restaurant; Worldfare, which will offer international dishes; and Bene Pasta, which will serve pizza and pasta.
Higher Grounds coffee shop and Montigue, an eatery specializing in sandwiches round out the options that will be available in the SUB.
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Miller said that while the restaurants have different schedules, food will be available at the SUB from 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.
"The diversity of the food options is just one more example of the attention we put in every detail to ensure that every aspect of the new SUB is as pleasing and community-friendly as possible," he said.
Don Knox, UNM construction manager, said that the finished SUB will be very pleasing and a source of pride for the UNM community for years to come.
"The quality of the building is top notch," Knox said. "I believe that we will all be very proud of it when it's done. It will definitely have an impact on the overall quality of the UNM experience."
Knox added that the project has progressed exponentially since K.L House took over the $25 million renovation project in March.
"The project is moving along much better now," Knox said. "There is a clear understanding of targets and goals regarding the building's progress by everyone involved. It is a shame that the project is behind schedule, but we are all doing everything we can to see that the wait will be worth it."
Miller said that while UNM administration and K.L. House Construction, Inc. representatives are confident that the July 1 date will be met, the grand opening of the new SUB will be postponed until the fall semester.
"While the building will be opened to students and made available for certain events during the summer, we have decided on holding the grand opening during the fall semester when everyone will be here to enjoy it," Miller said.
The SUB renovation project, which began in 2001, was originally planned to be finished in August, 2002. After numerous requests for deadline extensions and several alleged infractions by the original contractor, Silver Construction, Inc., UNM administrators terminated its contract and began talks to expedite completion of the project.
If the July 1 completion date is met, the SUB renovation project will be almost a year behind schedule.
Mike Brogdon, president of K.L. House, Inc., said that while it took a transitional period of several weeks for his company to become acclimated with the project, progress is being made and everyone is doing their part to see that the July 1 completion date is met.
"We appreciate that the University has a lot of activities that they want to hold in the SUB, and are using every resource at our disposal to see that the July 1 date is met," Brogdon said.
