Chats set to close after winter break When students return from winter break, they will find their late-night dining opinions cut once again with the closing of Chats, a popular meeting spot. Representatives of Campus Dining told the Undergraduate Assembly on Sunday that Chats, located inside Class of 1920 Commons, will be closing its food operations one week from today. According to Peg Lacey, managing director of Campus Dining, the space will still be open to students. "Actually, what's happening is the space will be available for study," Lacey said. Lacey said Chats was closing because other late night dining options were drawing students away from the Penn-owned vendor. "Basically, the number of students using Chats has deteriorated," she explained. The close of food service at Chats comes on the heels of the opening of the the Houston Marketplace in Houston Hall this September. And food vendors in the Quadrangle's McClelland Hall and the Quad Commissary did not re-open this semester with the addition of the new Houston Hall food court. Associate Vice President of Campus Services Larry Moneta agreed with Lacey's assessment. "The evidence is that Chats is nowhere near as popular as it used to be," he said. However, at the UA meeting, Lacey had also noted that Chats was closing due to lack of qualified food service staff in the Philadelphia area. The UA recommended that Chats be open in the spring semester on Sundays through Thursdays until 1 a.m. The motion also asks for the addition of vending machines, as well as posting a Spectaguard at the entrance. Lacey and other representatives of Campus Dining at the UA meeting said that they would advocate the UA's position.
-- Tristan Schweiger
