Minnesota State University, Mankato
Food Service RFP – Question and Answers #1
Posted May 15, 2015
1. Will the new residential dining facility grill platform have a charbroiler?
a. Yes.
2. What will the maximum seating be in the residential dining facility?
a. Approximately 860.
3. Are the dining employees unionized? If so what union?
a. Yes. The Union is AFSCME.
4. What is the arrangement with the Vikings? Is that part of this contract?
a. The Vikings will contract directly with the Vendor. Most Vikings meals take place in the
residential dining facility.
5. Is there a past MN Vikings RFP or contract that vendors could see?
a. The agreement between the Vikings and the current Vendor is a private contract and
the University does not have access to it.
6. Is there a commission that comes back to the school for hosting the MN Vikings?
a. Currently, the University does not receive commission on this event. For the new
contract, the University will view this as Catering and commissionable at the Catering
Services commission rate.
7. What are the hours of operation for the dining hall?
a. The dining hall is open for continuous service. During specific time periods there are
reduced offerings. Current hours of operation can be found at
http://www.mnsu.edu/dining/carkoski_hours_by_concept.pdf
8. On the drawings for the new residential dining facility there is mention of a temporary
Convenience Store – please explain the need for this.
a. The temporary Convenience Store will be needed when Carkoski is razed to make way
for the final phase of housing construction. It is unlikely that this will occur during the
contract term, so should not be considered in Vendor proposals.
9. What are the plans for the Carkoski Neighborhood – Phase 3 planning?
a. Plans can found via the following link:
https://www.mnsu.edu/reslife/construction/renewal_of_the_residence_communities.h
tml
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Minnesota State University, Mankato
Food Service RFP – Question and Answers #1
Posted May 15, 2015
10. What is the seating functionality of Chet’s and the flex dining?
a. The Flex Dining Room is located between the main dining room in Carkoski and the
Chet’s Place grill, also in Carkoski. The room has lockable doors at each adjacency.
During the day, the Flex Dining room is open to the main dining room and is not
available to Chet’s customers. In the evening, the Flex Dining room is open to Chet’s
Place, and is not available to customers in the main all-you-care-to-eat dining room.
11. What is the composition of the steering committee?
a. Cindy Janney, Co-Chair, Director, Residential Life
Mark Constantine, Co-Chair, Director, Centennial Student Union and Student Activities
David Jones, VP, Student Affairs and Enrollment Management
Rick Straka, VP, Finance and Administration
Kevin Buisman, Director of Athletics
Casey Duevel, Inter Faculty Organization Representative
Sara Frederick, Advancement Representative
Mariah Haffield, Minn. State Student Association Student Representative
Brian Jones, Admissions Representative
Jane Kolars, AFSCME Representative
Elizabeth Lohrenz, International Affairs Representative
Lori Marti, Student Health Services Representative
Kelly Meier, Institutional Diversity Representative
Brian Schneider, Middle Management Association Representative
Julie Snow,
MSUAASF Representative
Denise Thompson, Academic Affairs Representative
Locke Tucker, Residence Hall Association Student Representative
Mark Wildt, Minn. Assoc. of Professional Employees Representative
12. 160 meal plans… how many students on average convert their meal plans to flex dollars?
a. 561 students converted meals to flex in the Fall 2014. 1094 students converted meals
to flex in the Spring 2015. The revenue associated with these conversions was as
follows:
Fall 2014: 64,640 meals converted X $5.35 per meal = $345,824 in meals converted to
flex
Spring 2015: 142,041 meals converted x $5.35 per meal = $759,919 in meals converted
to flex
13. On the Overview tab: Total Revenue: The difference between MavCash and Flex Dollars is that
cash?
a. Yes, Total Revenue, less Flex Dollars Revenue, less MavCash Revenue equals the Cash
Revenue.
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Minnesota State University, Mankato
Food Service RFP – Question and Answers #1
Posted May 15, 2015
14. Will there be unamortized debt at the end of the contract term?
a. No.
15. Will there be a required investment for smallwares/serviceware for the new residential dining
facility?
a. No. The University intends to make this investment.
16. Who owns the smallwares in use in the foodservice operations.
a. The University owns these.
17. Who owns the lockers/locked storage bins in the foodservice back of the house areas?
a. These are owned by the University.
18. Meal Plans, what causes a student to convert their meal plan to a flex plan?
a. Some students prefer greater access to campus retail offerings and some find the CSU to
be more geographically convenient at mid-day.
19. Are any of the Mav Ave food concepts subcontracted out by the vendor?
a. None of the Mav Ave food concepts are subcontracted.
20. What if a question comes up after the deadline has past? Will it be responded to?
a. There is no guarantee the MnSCU will respond to questions submitted after the
deadline.
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