The Student Union will take back the Park Student Center when Aramark Corporation relinquishes control March 9, Student Union Director Dan Adams announced Friday.

"Aramark has decided that they are not making the level of profit they thought they would make on this campus," Adams said.

Aramark took over operation of the Park Student Center, at East Fifth Street and North Park Avenue, just last August. They incorporated five of its own trademark names, like Wokery and Grilleworks, in the mini-mall-style food court. TCBY yogurt, Sausage Deli and Chick-fil-A rounded out the center's offerings.

Adams said part of Aramark's problems came from offering higher starting salaries than the Student Union, ignoring student input and higher prices.

So Aramark asked to renegotiate its contract with the university, Adams said.

Adams said Aramark asked for relief from the second year increase in the percentage of sales they pay the university.

"They asked us to not expect the percentage level to go up," Adams said. "They were asking for relief somewhere in the neighborhood of $10,000 to $12,000 per month."

Not long after, Adams said, Aramark asked to be released from the contract with a 60-day termination letter.

"We didn't expect this to happen this quickly," said Mike Low, Student Union assistant director for student business affairs.

Aramark will be taking their five brands in the food-court area (Changing Scenes, Grilleworks, Salad Garden, El Paso and Wokery) and Adams said the Union will replace them with comparable Union concepts to keep the format the same.

He also said the Student Union is in licensing negotiations to keep TCBY, Sausage Deli and Chick-fil-A.

To finalize the transition, Adams said the university is negotiating to buy the equipment Aramark installed.

Adams said it has been his and his staff's concern that students are not affected and do not see any change at all during the transition.

"We feel really positive (about the switch)," Adams said. "We do not feel their leaving the campus will be leaving us in a bad position."

On Friday, Adams and Low said they held a meeting with student workers and employees of the Park Student Center to tell them about the change.

"There was some anxiety on their part," Low said. "We told them we want them to stay until the end of the semester." Low said the Union will maintain the employees' old schedules as closely as possible. The UA will have to redetermine their job classifications and try to maintain their current pay rates.

Mark DeWeerdt, one of Park Student Center's student managers and an education junior, said word of Aramark's pullout had been around for some time, and students and employees had been concerned they would either lose their jobs or have to take a pay cut.

He said he felt Adams and Low had reassured the employees and students who attended Friday's meeting that the transition will be a smooth one.

"Everybody is a little worried about it, but it's no big deal," DeWeerdt said.

In the long run, he said, it is better that the center come back under the Student Union's control.

Adams said student input is welcome and can be sent via e-mail to: adamsd@ccit.arizona.edu.