Note: The editorial board for the 2015/16 school year produced this Our View.
Construction for the new on-campus stadium is set to begin July 1, and many decisions still remain to be made.
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Colorado State University President Tony Frank proposed an additional $18 million in bond sales to go toward the completion of an academic and alumni facility on the stadium Thursday. Although many students know that an academic portion of the stadium is a possibility, they may not know that this portion will cost an additional $13 million.
The email proposing this action was sent to campus officials early Thursday morning, and it was proposed and approved at the Board of Governors meeting midday.
Constructing the academic facility now, with the stadium construction, will cost the University 50 percent less than if the academic facility were to be built on its own.
If the University decides to move forward with the new bond package, $850,000 annually will be taken from the general fund to service debt payments. The University plans to consider campus input on this decision before the Board of Governors meeting in June.
While it may be reasonable to finance an academic area through general fund money, it should only be done after considering input from a student body that was originally told it would not be paying for this project. The University plans to gather campus opinion at a time when students are leaving campus, and only a month remains before the decision must be made.
The campus community has been aware of the bond package that includes the new health center since the first Board of Governors meeting this semester, but the $18 million addition to this package was disclosed just days before the year concludes.
The University should consider the importance of input from the CSU community, especially on an issue that has been debated since it was introduced.
The additional bond package will be discussed Tuesday at a closed-door executive committee session. We hope that the University will offer the student body other opportunities to share our voices before the decision is final.
2015/16 editors:
Skyler Leonard
Caitlin Curley
Rick Cookson
Christina Vessa
Sarah Papa
Ellie Mulder
Hannah Ditzenberger
Emmett McCarthy
Haleigh McGill
Abbie Parr
Keegan Pope
Katie Schmidt
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Collegian Editorial Board can be reached at letters@collegian.com.
