The recently-opened diner at the downtown Binghamton bus station is preparing to expand its operating hours.

George Slavik Jr., an owner of Elsie's Diner, says the eatery soon will stay open until seven o'clock on Friday and Sunday evenings.

The restaurant on the Chenango Street side of the bus terminal opened July 1.

Slavik says the diner's extra hours of operation will take effect by the end of the month. He says the change is being made to serve Binghamton University students as they prepare to catch a bus home for the weekend and then when they return to school.

Slavik says he's pleased with the initial response to the diner, which has been serving breakfast and lunch in space being leased from Broome County.

Slavik says the restaurant features cookies and pies that are baked on site.

Under the announced terms of the lease for Elsie's, the business pays $850 a month for the first year. The payment is set to rise to $900 a month starting next July.

The county had opened the Twilight Diner in the same space in May 2012. That diner was closed just over a year later after the county reported losing thousands of dollars in the venture.

Records released by the county indicated the operation lost almost $20,000 in a seven-month period.

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