Corinna Kieft Storyteller

“It just took my money, and I was so upset, I almost kicked that machine.” First-year Conestoga student John Carlo Dalusong recounts his experience with a faulty vending machine that failed to dispense his bag of chips. During the first month of the new semester, Dalusong has been let down three times. Various machines across the campus have dispensed the incorrect drink or simply refused to operate. 

He’s not the only one. Around 4000 students attend Conestoga College’s Downtown Kitchener (DTK) campus, in the city’s Market Square. The basement and ground floors are full of classrooms and quiet studying areas, including a student lounge, but the upstairs food court remains empty, leaving hungry students with the choice to take a chance on one of four vending machines or leave campus if they’re looking for a meal.

“There are no restaurants really within five minutes of the campus. So I’ll end up having to drive 10 minutes to a place close by just to eat,” says student Riley Cashman. “It’s just a little inconvenient.”

For Conestoga students who study at other campuses, this isn’t an issue. On the other side of Kitchener, the Doon campus provides eight different dining options for students, which are generally open from 9 a.m – 2 p.m Mondays through Fridays.

Every student at Conestoga has a ONE Card, which can act as an identifier and bus pass. If they choose, a student may also load their card with “Condor Cash,” a currency that is meant to be used on Conestoga campuses for vending machines, bookstores, food purchases, and use of the printers. 

The vending machines at the Doon campus accept Condor Cash, but the DTK campus does not. If a student attending classes in Downtown Kitchener realizes this too late, they may find their Condor Cash is not of any use to them. 

Conestoga does offer refunds for Condor Cash, but at a price. According to the ONE Card terms of service, “All refund requests are subject to $50 administration fee that will be deducted from the ONE Card account balance prior to any refund being issued.”

Europro, the company that owns Market Square in Kitchener, did not respond in time for a comment regarding potential plans to rent out the empty spaces in the food court. 

Conestoga recently announced the development of a new restaurant for their Waterloo Campus, run by students in the culinary arts program. As for the Downtown Kitchener Campus, there have been no updates regarding potential dining options, meaning all that students like John Carlo Dalusong can do is hope the vending machines start behaving as they should.