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Photo Courtesy of University Architect
An artist's rendition of the Student Center from Euclid Avenue and East 21st Street.
New Student Center planning under way
By Michael C. Butz
Construction of the $50-million Student Center, which will be located at the site of the current student center and is part of the next phase of Cleveland State University's Master Plan, is set to begin in summer 2007, according to John J. Boyle III, vice president for Business Affairs and Finance.
The university is in the process of hiring Charles Gwathmey of Gwathmey Siegel & Associates Architects to be the architect for the project.
"We are in negotiations that should be completed by the end of the month," Boyle said.
Gwathmey Siegel & Associates is based in New York City and has designed projects for several universities, including Harvard University, Cornell University and Dartmouth College. Locally, it also designed the Akron-Summit County Public Library in 2004. Once those negotiations are completed, preliminary schematic designs will be produced. From there, those preliminary schematics will be developed into formal designs, which will be made into construction drawings.
Once the construction drawings are in place, the university will start accepting bids from contractors.
"As we move into the design and start formulating features and materials, then costs become firmer," Boyle said. "At each phase, we come closer to estimating the actual building costs and make adjustments if the project is over budget."
According to Boyle, the estimated cost of the 120,000-square-foot Student Center breaks down into three parts.
Construction will cost approximately $24 million, with fees for permits, furnishings and contingencies accounting for another $16 million.
Temporary location costs, parking, site, InnerLink and demolition costs will account for the remaining $10 million. These estimates are based on average per-square-foot costs in Northeast Ohio for this kind of building.
According to the University Architect's Web site, bonds will be used to pay for the project. Those bonds were issued in 2004 and are already available. To pay back the bonds, funds from the student general fee will be used.
A university-wide, two-day student focus group was held on April 23-24, 2003, to determine whether students would be willing to pay to support construction of both a student center and a recreation center, according to Tim Long, director of Budget and Financial Analysis. Of the 473 students who were involved, 70 percent responded favorably to questions that gauged whether they would support raising the general fee to pay for the facilities.
With that, Cleveland State's Board of Trustees approved the raise. The Ohio Board of Regents as well as the State Controlling Board later approved it.
In fall 2004, the general fee went up $2 per credit hour. In fall 2005, it went up another $6, and in fall 2006, the general fee will go up an additional $6. The total increase will then be $14 per credit hour. With this amount, the general fee starting Fall 2006 will total $36.50 per credit hour.
According to Long, the $14 per credit hour raise in the general fee is not counted when calculating the amount Cleveland State can raise its tuition per year under the State of Ohio's 6 percent tuition cap.
Boyle said the project is awaiting the Board of Trustees' approval for additional funding to complete the area under Main Classroom, for the temporary relocation of university offices currently in the UC, and the site changes and demolition of the present building. A date for the trustees' decision hasn't been set yet because they must wait until the State of Ohio completes its Capital Bill.
If funding for these portions of the project isn't available, however, Boyle points out that there would not be any requests for additional student fees. He also points out that CSU's general fee is lower than any other state university in Ohio except for Ohio State and Shawnee State.
The new Student Center will be built to address the needs of today's students, which are much different than those of students when the existing University Center was built, according to Boyle.
"We need a building that can adapt to the new ways students spend their leisure time," Boyle said. "[The Student Center] will be open longer, serve food for longer hours and generally be far more user friendly."
As part of the Master Plan, the University Bookstore would move into the new Student Center. Also planned are more dining options and more space for student organizations.
The portion of the InnerLink that goes through the UC would be eliminated during construction and rebuilt as part of the new Student Center.
The Student Center is scheduled to be ready for use by fall 2009. The first phase of the Master Plan has included the Recreation Center as well as the renovation of Fenn Tower.