Western can now dine — and wine — faculty and staff.

In recent negotiations with Aramark, the food service provider agreed to renovate the current Memorial and Executive rooms in Garrett Center from small, barely used meeting rooms to dining facilities.

Aramark agreed to pay for improvements and be the exclusive caterer for functions held in the rooms.

In addition to food, Aramark, which has a liquor license, can serve alcohol if all attendants are 21 or older.

“We wanted to have a nice place where you want to leave a good impression,” President Gary Ransdell said.

Dining Services Director Barry Wells said the room will be used for entertaining high profile campus guests like donors and members of the Board of Regents.

The two rooms, joined by an inside doorway, will be used for formal dinners and receptions. One will be equipped with a formal dining table for 14 guests. The other room will hold 50 people for a reception.

The rooms now have drywall, new carpet, improved lighting, better heating and air conditioning and crown molding.

The rooms will also be available for off-campus private use, but campus functions will take priority. An off-campus renter will pay $150 per event or $250 for an entire day. Western employees will be charged $75 an event or $125 a day.

All monies collected go back into an account used exclusively for upkeep of the room.

“It really will give us a nice area to host people on campus,” said Gene Tice, vice president of Student Affairs and Campus Services. “It’s something we haven’t had before.”

Reach Jessica Sasseen at [email protected].