TacoTime Express to arrive at the EMU in October
By Ed Carson
I>»0CV» f)a#y fmt/Kkl
Students arriving ol the Uni
varsity this fall will see the KMU
Fishbowl undergoing* facelift
Reconstructive surgery is tak
ing place in the northwest comer
of the Fishbowl to make room for
a TacoTime restaurant and an
espresso bar When finished. ;«•'>
pin will be able lo order from a
limited menu of Mexican fast
fcxxi inside or outside of the Fish
how i
A sell-serve frozen yogurt
mm lime will also Ixti set up in the
Fishhow I
C.arr said the Fishbowl will
lose about 211 seals However,
umbrellas will lie mounted on
tables outside lo make up for the
redui ed inside seating
The l acol ime KMU outlet w ill
Ik* railed the I aco I line Express
at the EMI
EMU Director Dusty Miller
said construe lion should !»* com
pleted hv mid or late Ch iotx*r
However, until that lime, slu
dents won't hav e to drive off cam
pus to find a burrito because
I Ml KckkI Serve e 1 )ir»s lor I >ei
mst.an viul that Tac.oTiim* will
provide a food c art oulsiefi* of the
Fishbowl until the permanent
structure is ready
I aco I nut* was seiec led ov er
I n ii Heli lo provide Mexican la-'
local iii the Fishhow l ai uTim«
% granting a five-year license
wiiii the I Ml ’ having a five-year
option to renew I h<- lentaliv**
agreement was announced Aug
I but the final contrat I wasn't
signed until Aug 24
Miller, who made the dec isum
lo ai cept Tai oTime’s offer said
TacoTime submitted an aggres
sivi) bid iinti showed a greater
willingness to be flexible
As we rend through the pro
posnls. it became very, vers obvi
ous that Tni.o'l ime really wanted
to be on the UOcampus." Miller
said "They worked to find out
what was unique about our needs
and then tailored their proposal
to meet those needs."
One of the reasons why Taco
Time worked so hard to he cho
sen is t>ecauxe Eugene is home.
Tar i)Tline's corporate headquar
ters is located in Eugene and
TacoTime's founder. Ron
Preedrick. is a University alum
The EMU TacoTime will also
!>e the first outlet on a university
or college campus in the United
States lor the company Taco
Time spokeswoman Patricia
Scan i said the company is eager
to expand into this growing seg
ment of the last food industry,
which Miller said was c lear fn>m
its proposal.
"What we got was a very for
ward- looking response* that says
TacoTime is ready to enter this
market — amt do it in a quality
\va>.’’ she said
In contrast, Miller said that
though Taco Hell submitted "a
very good standard response that
has proven successful on college
campuses," it was not us attra<
tivo to the KMU as TacoTime's
proposal.
The winning proposal con
tained what Miller described as
"advantageous financial terms."
In particular. TacoTime only
asked for H percent of the store’s
gross sales, minus soft drinks, in
exchange for a license, whereas
Taco Bell wanted the standard 10
percent.
TacoTime also agreed to pro
vide substantial assistance to the
EMU for purchasing equipnieni
at wholesale prices and market
ing the new venue
TacoTime is also making con
cessions on its work uniform
Instead of the usual full-blown
last food altire. employees at the
EMU TacoTime will only have
to wear a green apron with the
words "TacoTime Express a!
EMU" written on it over th<
own clothing
Several EMU food service
employees, including Carr, will
undergo two five-day training
sessions at TacoTime's corpo
rate headquarters to learn how
to make TacoTime food taste
exactly like food at any other
TacoTime
Carr said that if the TacoTime
and espresso bar are successful,
he mav be able to increase stu
dent food service employment
bv 5 percent.
The EMU decided to look lor
a Mexican fast food vendor after
that option scored high on a s,.
vev of students, faculty and si
conducted bv a private i onsu
mg firm The EMI Board of
Directors approved the Mevi m
last food concept if the ■ •nd >;
spring term
Faco Fifties typically serve
Coca Cola soft drinks in the :
outlets, hut the TacoTime
Express at the EMU will use
Pepsi products because the EMI
has a contract lo serve only Pep
si brand soft drinks. Pepsi is the
parent company of Taco Bell
---,
Not All Breaks
End With Summer
purchase
Student
Health
Insurance
Now through October 8th
Also inquire about...
® Dependent Coverage
® Optional Catastrophic Benefits
Come in and check it out at the
Student Health Center
13th & Agate St. • 346-3702