Meter

Issue date: 4/13/09 Section: Campus News

Media Credit: James Miller - TSU Meter Sport Zone, the campus Aramark facility housed near the campus apartments, was recently opened for a few graduation parties.

Media Credit: James Miller - TSU Meter Officials are considering reopening the sports bar for students in the fall.

The TSU campus dining facility known by many students as Sports Zone is opening to host a pair of personal graduation parties.

In fact, Aramark officials who manage the site said that students and student organizations can continue to rent out the facility, which has a capacity of about 50 people, for a $200 refundable deposit, as long as they keep it clean.

Originally built for students, Sports Zone was first established during the 2004 fall semester as another "fun" campus eatery, as well as a lounging area for students, according to Aramark's Food Service Director James Cooke.

Themed like a sports bar, the spirited facility offers comfortable seating and wireless internet, as well as a mural painting on the walls portraying the university's historic Olympic and athletic tradition.

"Sports Zone was a restaurant where we served students," said Cooke, explaining his commitment. "Now, we reopened it for students who want to rent it for special events."

Cooke said that even though Sports Zone did not meet its original purpose, he would not immediately consider renting the facility to non-students because of an incident last summer in which a flat-screen television was stolen from the site.

Kerry Washington, a senior education major from Flint, Mich., said she remembers Sports Zone as a nice place to hang out during her freshman year, where she mingled with other out-of-state freshmen and upperclassman students on campus.

"I miss going to the Sports Zone because it was a nice place for me to meet new people," Washington said. "I was a freshman when it was built and I didn't really know anyone."

When Sports Zone first opened, it served students but did not offer the declining balance students had been accustomed to using at other venues on campus.

Also, the restaurant did not offer meal equivalencies which were offered in the campus food courts in the sub and Rudolph Residence Hall.

Without the declining balance to make food more affordable, the restaurant failed to catch students' full attention.

Once the restaurant began accepting declining balances the following semester, students continued to complain that the prices were too high for the small $50 that was offered with the declining balance.

I'm not upset that Sports Zone is no longer open," said Bryan Howard, a senior business major from Miami. "It was (too) pricey for student(s) that wanted to enjoy a simple chicken tenders and fries (meal)."

Now that the declining balance program offers students $200 each semester, Cooke and other administrators are considering re-opening Sports Zone.

During homecoming, WTST "The Blaze" campus radio station rented the restaurant for a KFC-sponsored meet and greet for students, hosted by special guest celebrity D.J. Drama, a popular hip-hop deejay from Atlanta.

Melissa Hall, public relations officer for WTST and a senior mass communication major from Memphis, coordinated the event and said she was delighted to revisit the restaurant again.

"The Sports Zone I remembered was the same as it was the last time I came as a freshman," Hall said. "The food was the same, gourmet-grilled burgers, chicken tenders, cheese sticks and the (virgin) strawberry daiquiris I had enjoyed before."

Besides Hall, other students like Jamial Horner are excited about possibly revisiting Sports Zone. Horner, a junior electrical engineering major from Dickerson, Tenn., said he had fond memories of the sports bar's menu and atmosphere.

"(Sports Zone) was different from what was served everyday in the café," Horner said. "I enjoyed the lounge-type setting."

Patrick Calvin, a senior history major from Nashville, agreed with Horner, saying, "When I attended the Sports Zone it was a good place to socialize outside of the courtyard. It had good music and I was with good company so my time was well spent."

Cooke declined to comment on reason why the declining balance issue affected the closing of Sports Zone.•

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