May 2, 8:42 p.m. This story originally incorrectly stated the Binz closure may come with the closing of Cretin and Grace halls. It has since been edited.

Twice a week, St. Thomas junior Angie Vognild eats at the Binz Refectory with her bandmates after band practice. She often orders the Roasted Hamjack from Hannah or Luther – both of whom already know what she is going to order. She then sits down at a table with her friends – sometimes they play card games, sometimes they just chat. Angie has been able to rely on the Binz since she was a first-year at St. Thomas when her older sister, a then-senior, introduced her to it. Although that consistency will likely stay through Angie’s senior year, future St. Thomas students might not get to experience the same.

According to Associate Vice President of Auxiliary Services Mitchell Karstens, the Binz could be closing for the 2020-2021 school year. While some possibilities remain that the Binz could remain open as a retail option on campus where students would be able to eat but not by utilizing meal swipes, the future of the Binz is largely in limbo.

Senior Luther Miller, one of the frequent makers of Angie’s Roasted Hamjack, is one of the students who wants the Binz to stay. He first got his job at the Binz as a first-year after hearing another Binz worker behind the counter play a song on the stereo. Miller, who was a fan of the music, subsequently asked if there was an open position at the restaurant. There was, and he took it without looking back.

“Having lived on South Campus for a long time, I really realized how important it was to have some dining services down there,” said Miller, who lived at Cretin through his junior year. “The quality of food was excellent, the staff were incredibly nice. Just taking that away is kind of a disservice.”

Senior Hannah Bryant, another Binz employee and maker of Angie’s sandwiches, feels the same way as Miller. She is having her graduation party at the Binz because almost everybody she wants to invite already works there. She has fond memories of the Binz and does not want to see it close.

Emma Rinn is a third senior worker at the Binz. She says that her plans to have her wedding at St. Thomas might fall through if she can’t have her reception at the Binz.

“It’s home to me,” Rinn said. “Not to sound cheesy, but I nap there, I work there, everyone there, we’re a close-knit community as workers.”

Despite all of the memories, Andrew Casale might be the saddest to see the Binz go. Casale, the manager of the Binz for over thirty years, has seen students like Luther, Hannah, and Emma come and go several times over. Now, he is looking at what could be the last time.

“I’m sure whatever final decision is made, it will be what it will be. But if it’s indeed gonna close then we will be having a celebration leading up to that point,” Casale said. “It’d be kind of fun to be here next year.”

According to university archives, the Binz was constructed on the St. Paul Seminary campus in 1978, serving students for over 40 years. Karstens says the university is “working with departments across campus to talk about the needs for the space and determine the best course of action.”

Zekriah Chaudhry can be reached at chau6735@stthomas.edu.