September 9, 2011

By Cait Campbell

The Mizzou Market on Hitt Street, which is open 24 hours a day, offers services to students well into the wee hours of the morning. For those who frequent the facility, the late night socializing and shopping will soon come to an end. Pershing Hall, along with the Mizzou Market inside, will be closing March 23 for renovations.

Campus Dining Services Marketing Manager Michael Wuest said the market is scheduled to remain closed through the remainder of the spring semester and the summer months, with a reopening scheduled in time for fall semester. The market will receive mechanical, electrical and plumbing renovations.

“We want to do some updating and make sure that we are up to code on everything,” he said.

A new ceiling will include updated fire sprinklers, plumbing and an improved dock and receiving area will be constructed outside.

“We are making it a lot easier to receive deliveries and a little easier for the people supplying our shelves and the employees,” Wuest said.

The inside of the convenience store will change very little, however upgrades to the refrigerated and frozen sections will be made.

“There are no major architectural changes,” Wuest said. “There will be little if any appearance change to the convenience store from the customer’s viewpoint.”

The Subway inside the store will close during the renovation, but will reopen when construction is done.

“I come here to do homework a lot because it is open 24 hours a day, and I get Subway,” senior Lucas Penning said.

In order to provide for students who utilize the 24-hour space, Campus Dining Services is discussing the option of temporary 24/7 service at another campus location.

“We don’t want to lose service with closing,” Wuest said. “The goal is for students not to notice any change in service, except for the location.”

The all-day services of the market cannot be found elsewhere on campus. After midnight, most facilities on campus are closed for the evening.

“(The closing) is very upsetting because the other Mizzou Markets don’t have Subway and 24-hour service,” Mitchell said. “I like that it also has a variety of options. They have Tylenol, hair products, anything you could need at all hours.”

The closing also comes as a surprise to most students.

“I didn’t know that (the market) was closing,” Penning said. “I’ll probably have to find a place to study and get coffee. I have always liked this place.”