Top: Vice President Peter Smits describes the site plan to Paul DeRuosi of Student Affairs and Gary Nelson of Student Life. Above: A 13-story clock tower will overlook the 10-story, 600,000-square-foot adobe-tiled building.

Save Mart Center unveiling draws oohs and aahhs

by Tom Uribes and John Zelezny

Caroline Williams journeyed into the future two weeks ago, ushered by a three-dimensional video "fly-through" and several poster-sized, color conceptual designs depicting the Save Mart Center that is targeted for completion on campus in November 2001.

The interim director of Career Services was among nearly 200 university faculty and staff who attended the campuswide unveiling Nov. 17 in the University Business Center to see the architectural concepts for the proposed multipurpose event center featuring 16,500 seats and a 150-foot-high clock tower.

Williams envisions the center serving as much more than a sports facility - eyeing it for such activities as job fairs, conferences and career days organized by her office.

"We're excited as a staff with the prospect of using the event center," she said. "We have outgrown the USU. We can draw 100 or more employers who bring one or two extra people and, combined with several hundred students attending, we get a large crowd and we need larger spaces."

Those in attendance at the unveiling seemed in awe of the designs as well as the video that was produced by Panagraph Productions of Fresno.

"I felt like I was stepping into the new millennium," said Andrea Galvan, secretary for the Division of Student Affairs. "It's a milestone in our history. The video and drawings showed a gorgeous building that will be an asset to the surrounding environment and will help attract students to the university. I can't wait to see it."

Dr. Stanley Ziegler, associate dean of the School of Natural Sciences, said he was impressed with the presentation and glad the event center seemed "academically oriented" with classrooms and computer facilities.

"But I hope the classrooms are not the first things to be cut out if there is not enough money to do everything," Ziegler said. "That would be a concern among faculty."

Michele Janiel, associate budget analyst in the University Budget Office rooted her hopes in reality, also.

"I hope they can raise enough money to fulfill those dreams we saw in the video," said Janiel. "It will be a great addition to the university. The designs for the multilevel seating looked very nice. The classroom additions and practice courts were well designed."

At a news conference that preceded the campus reception, President John D. Welty introduced architect Don Dethlefs, who said the 10-story-high Save Mart Center - featuring a "classic collegiate" design with a California-style tile roof - will serve as a bold and attractive gateway to the southeast entry of campus.

Construction would start next fall; the structure would take two years to build. As currently designed, the Save Mart Center would be California's largest indoor event center between Los Angeles and the Bay Area.

Dethlefs' firm, Sink Combs Dethlefs of Denver, Colo., was hired in August and was encouraged to design a facility that incorporated the wish lists of many campus and community groups.

Welty said the resulting conceptual design is for a "world-class" facility.

Whether the university can build the entire 600,000-square-foot complex as currently designed will be determined over the next few months, the president said. During that time the university will obtain detailed cost estimates for each element of the plan and will also get a clear picture of how much money can be raised.

A total construction cost has not yet been calculated, but Welty said it would exceed $60 million and will be provided primarily by private funds.

In January the university secured a corporate sponsorship deal with Pepsi-Cola and Save Mart Supermarkets that will contribute about $40 million to the project over 20 years. Additional corporate sponsors and major donors currently are being sought, and a campaign to sell personal seat licenses will be launched in the spring. Funds will also be raised through the sale of 30 luxury suites and 2,500 premium "club" seats.

The fund drive is being headed by Fresno business leaders Bob Duncan and Ed Kashian, who are confident that the necessary support will be raised from throughout Central California.