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Ackerman Union may soon see the introduction of a Healthy Foods bar as the Associated Students UCLA passed a motion to finalize the store’s design and construction budget during its board of directors meeting Friday.

While ASUCLA had originally planned to build the Healthy Foods bar with a $350,000 budget, it re-evaluated the costs and redesigned the construction plans so that the total costs would be $510,000.

The Healthy Foods bar is being designed to serve students various products, such as the pre-made sandwiches and healthy fruit drinks currently sold at Tropix and in ASUCLA stores, for students lounging in Ackerman Union, said ASUCLA Executive Director Bob Williams.

The Healthy Foods bar will replace Tropix on Ackerman Level 1, and, if Jamba Juice is not ready by then, smoothies will be relocated to the Cooperage.

Williams said that they had created the original plans from typical construction cost guidelines 10 years ago, but that the design needed to be revised to take rising costs and inflation into consideration.

A revised, cheaper design which proposed to modify the shape of the facility to be “more angular and curved” was rejected in favor of the current design, which closely mirrors the original design aside from the removal of an overhead structure and oven.

The creation of a Healthy Foods bar is being done at the same time that plans for a new smoothie location are being developed.

Arrangements to bring a Jamba Juice to Ackerman Union to replace the X-Cape Arcade are being discussed.

Preliminary drawings show part of the lounge’s space filled with tables and chairs and the other half filled with couch “pods” that students could recline and nap on.

As ASUCLA works to bring new establishments to students, it is also looking to modify food services already in place.

The temporary location of Taco Bell in the Cooperage has caused long lines during the peak hours of the day.

The Food Services Committee is working to shorten the wait time and move Taco Bell to a more efficient location, Williams said.

After two years of protests against Taco Bell over wages paid to the tomato pickers of the company’s supplier, ASUCLA’s Board of Directors voted to remove the chain in October of last year.

After a year-long hiatus, Taco Bell was invited back onto campus to its present location, with plans to relocate it to a larger facility during the upcoming renovation of the Cooperage.

Besides Taco Bell’s earnings, ASUCLA Chief Financial Officer Rich Delia said finances have been given an extra boost from rising BearWear sales that are believed to be largely a result from the UCLA football team’s success this season.

BearWear sales, which were originally projected to be $1.4 million in September and October, turned out to be about $1.6 million, generating $225,000 dollars more than anticipated.

These extra sales have helped ASUCLA recoup costs associated with rising utility costs and construction of its new food eateries, Delia said.

While optimistic about BearWear sales, Williams said that the good news should be taken with a grain of salt.

“I want to make sure we know it’s only an incremental bump,” he said.

Sales in the computer store have also increased due to sales associated with ASUCLA’s Apple Computer promotion.

ASUCLA also discussed student involvement in campus activities.

“There’s been a large increase in registered student groups to about 800,” said undergraduate representative Gustavo DeHaro.

Last year, between 650 to 700 organizations registered as official UCLA student-run groups.

ASUCLA is also forming office hours, during which students can meet with board members in 20-minute sessions. Discussions can be about anything that is ASUCLA-related.

Williams said the office hours are an effort to allow students to better know the organization behind the student shops on campus.