By Katie Hamilton

The c-store located in Market Place on Neil Avenue is filled with snacks for students to purchase

The C in c-store may stand for convenience, but the Ohio State administration may not be as convenient as they thought.

Many students find the lack of healthy products, variety of options, and the change in swipe value inhibits their ability to use the c-store for its original intent.

“We know that students and their busy lives have different needs at different times of the day and different days of the week, so our intent is to have a wide range of options, so we can serve them as they need,” Dave Isaacs, spokesman for University Dining Services said. “The C obviously stands for convenience: its right on campus, you can grab something after class or on your way to class.”

Students biggest complaint with the c-store seems to be the reduction of value their swipe has in the store. A swipe is a part of a student’s meal plan which can be used at any Ohio State dining service. It’s usually worth $8 but it is notably decreased to $5 when shopping at the c-store, despite the products being priced higher than local grocery stores, such as Giant Eagle and Kroger.

Isaacs explained that two years ago dining services met with several students including representatives for USG and RAC, staff members, and others to discuss the dining plans. It is there that they decided to reduce the value of a swipe at the c-store after they analyzed all the aspects of a meal plan: what the values of food were and what the financial needs of students were.

“Our prices are based on several things: one is the price were charged by our venders and we also benchmark other colleges and universities meaning we compare prices, offerings, and what kind of operations they run,” Isaacs said.

Isaacs didn’t know what specific student financial aspects made them decide to decrease the swipe amount and also said he wasn’t sure who would have that information.

“I like the c-store and the things that they have but I don’t like the price, so I use it less because of the price,” Kristin Sampson, a second-year said.

Sampson explained that she continues to go to Kroger despite the c-store being closer to her because she feels the prices are too high and that the store lacks variety.

One element of the c-store students find to be particularly lacking is the range of fresh produce available.

“I’ve tried to be healthier and the c-store just doesn’t have a lot of options,” second-year Katie Turner said. “They have strawberries and carrots and that’s it, so I try to stay clear of it.”

Turner said it was nice to have the extra options available, although she didn’t find the c-store’s offerings very fulfilling of her dietary needs.

When asked about the lack of variety available at the c-store, Isaac explained that what’s offered is based on available square footage as well as student demand and feedback within the structure of their vendor contracts.

“If there is a product or line of products that students want we absolutely encourage that feedback,” Isaacs shared. “If it’s at all feasible we will work to make that happen.”

Isaacs explained that students can email dining@osu.edu with any requests they may have for items in the c-store. He could not say whether or not they actually implemented any of those requests thus far.

By Courtney Voisard

Traditions is the name of three all-you-care-to-eat cafeterias located across campus at the Ohio State University. Traditions at Kennedy, Morrill, and Scott are responsible for feeding the nearly 40,000 students residing on campus while working to leave the smallest environmental footprint possible.

Meals at Traditions are included in three-out-of-four university meal plans and includes a wide array of food options. With so many students eating at Traditions every day, these large cafeterias are working to achieve the most environmentally friendly means of waste management.

“We have been pretty aggressive at trying different technologies.” Brian Roe, director of the Ohio State Food Waste Collaborative said of Traditions across campus that each use different methods of waste management. “Scott has EnviroPure, Kennedy uses a pulper and Morrill does not have any technology at this time but they are exploring new options.”

According to University Dining Services, the compact pulper that operates in the dish room of Kennedy takes organic material filtered through water to an extractor that lifts the waste from the water. The water is contained to be used again and again, but the pulp from Kennedy is picked up and taken to Qasar Energy Group which ultimately converts the pulp into biogas that can be used to generate electricity.

OSU has installed two EnviroPure Bio-digester waste systems in their newest and largest Traditions location: Traditions at Scott. This waste system is a self-contained, continual-feed, food disposal system designed to convert food waste into water through a special process, according to University Dining Services.

Food waste first travels from the dishes to a trough where a closed system of water moves it to an extractor. The extractor then dumps the waste into a grinder that fills a digester tank. The mass in the tank digests and transforms into greywater that is disposed into the water system.

Traditions across campus have adopted these waste management methods to reduce the amount of waste they accumulate while still feeding many hungry students around campus.

By Emily Derikito

University Dining Services is closing in on three years since it announced it would switch from block system-based meal plans in favor of the current program.

According to Dave Isaacs, manager of communication and media relations for the Office of Student Life, this transition was the result of student suggestions.

“We especially took into consideration the viewpoint of students who have direct current experience with meal plans,” Isaacs stated in an email.

Student organizations involved in the process included the Residence Hall Advisory Council, Resident Advisors, and Undergraduate Student Government.

Now, Ohio State offers six different meal plan options: Unlimited, Scarlet 14, Gray 10, Carmen 1, Carmen 2 and Declining Balance.

Carmen 1 and Carmen 2 are available only for students who live off campus and the Declining Balance plan is accessible to students who are in their second year or higher. All students, including first-year students living in an on-campus residence hall, can choose between the Unlimited, Scarlet 14 or Gray 10 plans.

“All students living on campus in a residence hall are required to have a dining plan – it is part of the housing contract,” Isaacs said. “Off-campus student may opt to purchase a dining plan.”

University dining plans are made up of Visits and Visit exchanges, Dining Dollars, and BuckID Cash. Visits allows students to swipe into any of the three buffet-style Traditions Dining Locations. Those buildings are Scott Traditions, Kennedy Commons, and Morrill Traditions. Weekly Visits are part of Unlimited, Scarlet 14 and Gray 10 plans.

Students with the Scarlet 14 and Gray 10 plans are able to exchange one Traditions Visit for a purchase of up to $8 at a retail location or $5 at a C-Store.

All plans include Dining Dollars which can be used at any Student Life Dining Services location and provide students with a discount on food purchases.

BuckID Cash can be used for transactions involving more than just food at establishments on and around campus. It is automatically included in the plans that include Visit exchanges, but all other plans have the option of adding BuckID Cash.

However, while Dining Dollars and BuckID Cash will continue to cumulate and be available to students for as long as they are enrolled at Ohio State, Visits operate on a weekly basis and unused swipes are not added to the next week. Isaacs stated that students should plan to redeem unused visits through exchanges before the week is reset at 3 a.m. on Monday mornings.

For Rebekkah Sommer,a second-year student studying agribusiness and applied economics who purchased the Scarlet 14, it is an inconvenience that the visits students pay for are not able to roll over.

“I usually just spend them to buy snacks for the next week,” Sommer said about her strategy to get the most out of her meal plan. “I go where I can get the full $8.”

According to Isaacs, students also have the option of donating unused visits to Block Out Hunger to benefit Neighborhood Services, Inc. as a result of efforts made by USG. Donations can be made by notifying cashiers at the Marketplace, North, and Morrill C-Stores as well as the PAD and telling them how many visits they would like to donate.

Scott Traditions is one of the three Traditions Dining Locations on campus.

Adison Niese

It seems that High Street has suffered from an identity crisis. It was once full of bars and local businesses on both the east and the west side of the street. Now, businesses are closing or moving, in particular between 16th Avenue and 17th Avenue.

The reason? Campus Partners, an affiliate organization with The Ohio State University that’s focus is on community development, has purchased several of the buildings on High Street resulting in the change in scenery in the University District.

Ohio State authorized Campus Partners with $7.6 million so that they could purchase real estate on High Street, according to a 2000 Ohio State press release.

The rezoning of the district began in 2015 when the City of Columbus rezones nine acres for the Campus Partners project, 15+High, for a commercial district, according to the another press release from The Ohio State University.

Campus Partners bought several spots on the east side of High Street, which has resulted in several new apartment complexes including the Wellington and the Wilson Place.

The Wellington is located right next to the 15+High spot, between 16th Avenue and 17th Avenue.

The 15+High project has been rezoned, however nothing has been decided for the lot between 16th Avenue and 17th Avenue.

Erin Prosser, the director of community development for the Campus Partners, said they “have not finalized building designs yet.”

One thing has been finalized though. Multiple businesses used to be present across from the Wexner Center, where the 15+High project is planned, have had to make a tough decision.

Too’s Under High, the Campus Convenience Store, Cuzzins Yogurt, Jimmy John’s, and the I Bar have all either relocated or closed for good.

“Development that is currently underway has been initiated by private property owners. They are responding to opportunities they have identified in the real estate market,” Matthew Hanson, a spokesmen for the University District organization, said through email.

There is some good news. The University Impact District Review Board recently approved a Chick-Fil-A, Chipotle, White Castle, and a Starbucks into the University District for the counterpoint of the several businesses gone.

As fourth years round out their last semester here at Ohio State, the will spend one last Spring Pub Crawl at the O Patio and Pub, which will close shortly after the spring semester.

O Patio and Pub will be closing shortly after the semester is over.