“There’s not enough space,” said HLS third-year Jennifer Tracy, as she worked on her laptop in a corner of the first floor seating area.

Both Horwitz and Tracy sat in the fairly empty room, in the company of an unused foosball table, an abandoned billiards table, three other students and outdated decor.

Dunham hypothesized that renovations would inspire students to use the downstairs facilities with the same frequency as they use the upstairs dining area.

While the downstairs area is sometimes barren, the dining area upstairs is usually filled beyond capacity.

“Crowded is not the word,” laughed a Hark restaurant cashier Quala Baker as she refilled the soda shelf during a late afternoon lull. “It’s been crazy here.”

General consensus is that something must be done about problems with The Hark, and PPC has given students many chances to voice their opinions.

“We have made an enormous amount of effort to get student input,” said Meltzer. “It is a student center and we want to design something that meets the needs of the students.”

Many students have shared their comments with the committee via e-mail and a focus group to which PPC has invited students.

The PPC will hold another focus group this afternoon where students can share their concerns with the architects who have taken on the project.