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[[underline]] Museum Restaurant Options and Facilities [[/underline]]

Formal contract negotiations with the joint venture of Marriott/Warner LeRoy on the Smithsonian's food services were delayed because of slowness by the joint venture in getting organized, identifying responsible staff, and providing materials requested by the Institution. The requested materials consisted of details on planned space renovations and improvements in all facilities and details of the financial arrangements between the joint venture and the Institution. This information was needed to complete the Smithsonian's draft contract which had been otherwise ready for some weeks. Generally acceptable information on space changes was received by the Institution in early August. Acceptable financial data has not been received so the Institution will propose the terms.

It is now anticipated that formal negotiations will begin on September 4, 1984, and, if they proceed smoothly, will be concluded about the end of September. Until the results of these negotiations are more clearly known, however, the Institution has been reluctant to allow the bid and award process on the construction of the National Air and Space Museum restaurant addition to start. Plans and specifications for that project, excluding interior layout, are complete, and Marriott/LeRoy and Hellmuth Obata and Kassabaum, the building's architect, are working on interior and basement space layouts which should be completed and approved by mid-September. If all goes well on the contract negotiations, actual construction will start this fall.