Dash (pictured above) permanently closed because of the reopening of Red Jacket Dining Hall. The building will now be taken over by Residence Life, according to CAS (Jenna Smolinski/ staff photographer).
Campus Auxiliary Services has decided to close Dash at the Commons, which has been open since 2016.
Soon after their return to campus, students discovered that the small corner store near the Saratoga Terrance had empty shelves.
According to an article published by The Lamron in October 2016, former CAS Marketing Manager Rebecca Stewart said the location became of interest for a convenience store when Red Jacket closed for renovation.
“Dash was opened when RJ was closed for construction,” Jonna Anne, CAS managing director, said. “So that was now three years ago when we had opened Dash. So, Dash was really like a stop-gap between when we had to shut down Red Jacket and there wasn’t dining on that side of campus. So, we took over the commons and put some retail and some grab-and-go things, so there was at least something closer.”
According to CAS, the Chowhound was also moved to South Village when RJ was under construction.
“We also put the Chowhound there for breakfast, lunch and late night,” Anne said. “So, we moved the Chowhound back to the green at lunch once RJ opened up again. We did decrease the Chowhound’s hours once RJ opened. Last year during the transition, we left Dash open. However, we shortened the hours, because RJ had been re-opened.”
According to Anne, the convenience store doesn’t have the same necessity it once had since similar products are available in other various locations throughout campus.
“So, the items that were popular at Dash we moved into Jacks—upstairs at Red Jacket—and into Max Market—downstairs at Letchworth,” Anne said. “We didn’t move many items into Mary Jemison or Books and Bytes because people don’t normally go there to get something to take back to their room unless it’s something to eat right there in the moment. But the convenience items that were popular went to those two locations, in the North and South Villages.”
According to Anne, the space has been turned over to Residence Life, the building’s former owners prior to Dash. Anne did say, however, that she does not know how Residence Life will allocate the space.
“The only time we will get involved in that space is with programs, but we haven’t been asked there yet,” Anne said. “We’ve done cooking classes, our health and wellness instructors have given nutrition talks and we have done safety cooking classes. Especially because of the space’s proximity to the townhouses, we used to teach them about cooking in ways that wouldn’t be unsafe or set the fire alarm off.”
Townhouse resident and biology major senior Claire Prunier said that she hopes the space will contribute additional study space to campus.
“It was nice to have Dash for the staple kitchen necessities,” Prunier said. “If I ever ran out of, say, milk or eggs, it was nice to have Dash there. I am upset it closed and hope that they turn it into a study space.”
Childhood and special education major junior Mary Kate Schuchman said she really enjoyed Dash when she was a freshman.
“I thought it was a super convenient and awesome resource for students, especially on Southside,” Schuchman said. “When you are walking to class it’s right there, so it’s nice to get coffee or breakfast. I also think that it was useful for students who wanted to buy groceries.”