To say visiting the temporary dining hall “Camp Parkside” is an inconvenience is an understatement.
Situated in Parking Lot 16, Camp Parkside is a temporary dining facility being used while the Parkside College dining hall undergoes renovations.
The Parkside dining hall renovations are due to be finished by Oct. 21, according to Cal State Long Beach Director of Housing and Residential Life Carol Roberts-Corb.
Even though the renovations should be finished in October, however, there is a chance the new Parkside dining hall will not open until November.
“That is if all continues to go well — you never know with construction,” Roberts-Corb said.
Many residents must be anxious to visit the new Parkside dining hall once its renovations are finished. And we don’t blame them.
We can’t say we are impressed, or even satisfied, with Camp Parkside.
Although Camp Parkside offers many of the same services as the Hillside College dining hall, its many problems probably deter students from visiting it.
As students living on campus know, going to classes and finding time to eat is tough.
Previously, the Parkside and Hillside dining halls had different operating hours, meaning if a student could not visit one dining hall during its hours, the other was likely open.
Now, the operating hours for Camp Parkside match those of the Hillside dining hall. This means that if one dining hall closes, the student is left without other options.
The situation is only worsened by Camp Parkside’s location. The temporary dining hall sits closer to Hillside than it does to Parkside. It’s also only a few minutes away from Hillside’s dining hall.
Camp Parkside not only inconveniences Parkside residents but also all other residents on campus.
The temporary dining hall is much smaller than the permanent Parkside dining hall. Since Camp Parkside is the only dining hall open on Sundays, many have to wait in long lines to get their food.
Not to mention, Camp Parkside also takes up much-needed parking spaces.
As CSULB students continue to struggle with parking on campus, we find it odd that Camp Parkside takes up so much valuable space.
Instead of delaying the opening of the new Parkside dining hall, officials in Housing and Residential Life should announce a firm opening date and stick to it.
With their past history of delays, though, we wouldn’t be surprised if the dining hall doesn’t open until next year.