Sub Wars imminent

By Michael Leung

A new Subway is going to be installed in MacEwan Student Centre–and it’s not the kind you want to ride on.

Campus Cove owner Brian Sander will open the new Subway sandwich store in September.

"We’re trying to be open for the Monday after Labour day," he said. "Although it is possible we may not be ready for a couple weeks thereafter. We’ll have to wait and see how things go."

The Subway outlet will be located in the lower floor of MSC on the same level as the Cove. Previously, all indoor pedestrian traffic was directed through the food court. According to redevelopment plans for MSC, pedestrian traffic will also pass through the space previously occupied by Max Café and Bar and the Campus Cove.

Although the Cove and the Subway are both owned by Sander, he anticipates that the store will be located distinctly apart from his Cove operations. He also explained that the redevelopment is definitely an improvement for the Cove.

"The viability of my location is somewhat restricted due to the fact that we were blocked off from the traffic flow," said Sander. "It’s been very hard to do well down there. It’s much more accessible due to the redevelopment that’s gone on."

Students’ Union President Barb Wright noted that the decision was in the works for quite some time.

"The Campus Cove spent a number of months renegotiating their lease with the SU," said Wright. "It was agreed upon that in return for a loss of some of their space, they would be able to open a more comprehensive food service operation."

However, Vienna Deli owner Joseph Cho expressed disapproval of the development. The Deli, along with University Food Service’s Smash Hit Subs offer similar sandwiches to those that will be offered by the incoming Subway. As a result, Cho said he will likely lose money.

"I’m totally not agreed," said Cho. "They [Subway] are a major franchise sub store with thousands of stores. There are two sub stores on campus already, why put three stores in with the same concept?"

University Food Services declined comment on the Subway opening.

Wright predicted positive impacts for students, and also felt that the new Subway would not affect Vienna Deli’s operations.

"I think that students will be happy with a Subway in MacEwan Hall," said Wright. "Vienna Deli has been a tenant in our building for a number of years and seems to be pretty popular with students.I think that students that have always gone to Vienna Deli for their subs will continue to do so. The price there is reasonable, and the quality is also good. Hopefully it will be a case of giving students more choices in healthy lunch options."

Sander agreed.

"You can always get a greasy hamburger somewhere or deep-fried something," he said. "I don’t think there is a fast food product on campus that can rival Subway for freshness or for healthy, quality food."

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