Students may soon be able to pass up the lines in the Thomas Hall dining room.

A convenience center, offering such items as chips, muffins and snack packs will be open at Thomas Hall by January 2003, said Mark Hudson, director of housing services.

The center will have an outside Thomas Hall entrance, and be similar to the Carman convenience center.

“We’ve got to actually break through a wall. There’s going to be a lot of noise,” Hudson said. “So we hope construction will start over Thanksgiving Break.”

Dining hall meal plans will not be accepted at the convenience center, Hudson said.

“Dining swipes won’t be a part of that (center)-just dining dollars or cash,” he said.

The new convenient center was proposed because of student need, said Kevin Leverence, Residence Hall Association president.

“We had our dining services committee who felt that (new convenience center) was an issue and brought it up,” he said. “It came up there was room for it in Stevenson or Thomas.”

He said the Carman Hall center mainly receives business from that one area of campus.

“The dining center proposed we get a new convenience center to service the rest of the campus,” Leverence said. “I don’t know how successful we can expect it to be right away as far as residents knowing about it.”