Any remaining doubt that Campus Pointe would become a reality at Fresno State was put to rest last week when the California State University Board of Trustees gave its blessing to the university̢۪s plans for the site, a big step toward construction.
But the controversy surrounding the project has not died down.
The plan is to build a multi-use complex on a 45-acre lot next to the Save Mart Center at Shaw and Chestnut avenues. The planned development, on university-owned land, would house privately-owned retail space and offices, a 14-screen movie theater, a 197-room hotel and 540 apartments, including housing for senior citizens. Nearly 1,400 residents may ultimately call Campus Pointe “home.”
Rent from businesses operating on the property would help pay down Fresno State̢۪s debt left over from the $103 million Save Mart Center, with some of the proceeds going to the College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology. Campus Pointe is estimated at $250 million with all costs covered by the development team, meaning the university will not have to foot the construction bill.
The trustees gave their final approval of Campus Pointe̢۪s Environmental Impact Report March 14. This report details the project̢۪s effects on the community and outlines ways to prevent or reduce negative impacts. Campus Pointe will be developed by Kashian Enterprises LP, which also built Fresno̢۪s River Park shopping complex. The project is under the oversight of California State University, Fresno Association, which also oversaw the building of the Save Mart Center.
Dr. Paul Oliaro, dean of Student Affairs, said chief functions for Campus Pointe include additional housing close to campus and more entertainment in the form of restaurants, retail shops and theater, all within walking distance of campus.
“Theaters will double as classrooms,” Oliaro said. “Not many classrooms on campus provide for 100 or more students.” He said these rooms will also be useful in hosting meetings and seminars.
Oliaro also touted the “intergenerational” housing Campus Pointe will promote. He said this model of people from different age groups living in close proximity is becoming more popular at campuses nationwide and is a good opportunity for increased interaction and “practical experience.”
That practical experience could come in the form of an internship or credit for community service for some students, Oliaro said, including students in gerontology and food service majors. “It just opens up a whole new world of opportunity,” Oliaro said.
Fresno State President Dr. John Welty said in an e-mail to The Collegian that a series of meetings were held on campus to find out what resources members of the campus community thought were important to achieve the goals of the university̢۪s strategic plan.
These needs included new facilities, Welty said. “I authorized planning to proceed for the project after reviewing the results of the meetings,” Welty said.
In a November editorial to The Fresno Bee, Welty laid out his belief that Campus Pointe “gives residents a greater opportunity to use university intellectual, cultural, and entertainment resources, adds to the local economy, provides a core of experienced experts to teach and mentor students and helps further diversify the campus community.”
But critics of the project, particularly local businesses and city officials from Clovis and Fresno, remain unswayed, saying that local businesses will be put at a disadvantage, traffic congestion in the area will increase and the development will be entitled to special tax exemptions and thus won̢۪t fully contribute to the community.
Clovis officials are particularly upset over the large new theater, especially since a 16-screen theater just opened at the Sierra Vista Mall in Clovis last December.
“They get privileges,” Fran Blackney, business advocate for the Clovis Chamber of Commerce, said of the university-sponsored project. “They don’t have to conform to general city plans.”
Blackney said public universities are exempt from certain city taxes, such as property taxes to help school districts and zoning regulations. She also feared for the fate of the city’s newest movie theater. “Either their cinema is going to go well or ours is,” Blackney said.
In addition, Blackney said she was particularly concerned about traffic. “The only thing Clovis gets out of Campus Pointe is more traffic,” Blackney said, adding her prediction of 18,000 more cars in the area as a result of Campus Pointe.
Clovis City Manager Kathy Millison said the university̢۪s ambitious plan would saturate the local market with an overabundance of movie screens and too many businesses of the same ilk, leading to more blight along Shaw Avenue.
She also complained of the university̢۪s decision to run first-run, popular films at the cinema instead of showing just the art and foreign language films the university initially proposed. Millison mentioned parking as an additional concern, as the Save Mart Center will lose some overflow parking as a result of the development.
Fresno State hasn’t done enough to meet the demands of community leaders over mitigating the project’s impact, Blackney added, including paying its fair share of local costs as well as impact fees — costs resulting from the expansion.
So far, Fresno State has agreed for the development to contribute $140,000 to Caltrans for freeway-related road and ramp improvements, and more than $322,000 for fire impact fees to the city of Fresno. The city of Fresno is still demanding millions more in impact fees for police, park and other services, issues still to be resolved.
Resolution was also reached with the city of Clovis when Fresno State agreed to have the project help pay for:
̢ۢadding an agricultural extension to Tollhouse Road up to Bullard Avenue
̢ۢwidening part of Barstow Avenue to four lanes with additional turn lanes
̢ۢinstalling security traffic cameras at Shaw and Willow avenues and Barstow and Willow avenues.
Deborah Adishian-Astone, associate vice president of campus auxiliary operations, said Campus Pointe wouldn’t result in local business losses. “The retail square feet represents only 16 percent of the total square feet for the entire development,” Adishian-Astone said. “The retail will be geared toward services for those who live at Campus Pointe and the surrounding campus area (i.e. grocery store, bank, dry cleaners, drug store, etc.).” Maya Cinemas will oversee the construction and operation of the planned theater, Adishian-Astone said.
In acknowledging that Campus Pointe models are catching on at other universities, Adishian-Astone described the model as “a mechanism for getting development accomplished that both generates a guaranteed revenue stream for the university and provides a low risk alternative for getting facilities built to serve the greater campus community.”
Some universities that have adopted Campus Pointe-style projects include Stanford, Georgetown and Auburn, but they differ in significant ways from Fresno State̢۪s plans in size and scope.
Fresno State students, at least those who were aware of Campus Pointe, were divided over the project̢۪s pros and cons.
Lorena Areas, senior liberal studies major, said Campus Pointe would be problematic because it will cause a lot of traffic.
But Nhia Xiong, a fourth grade teacher and Fresno State alumnus who plans to return to Fresno State next fall to pursue a post-baccalaureate degree, liked the idea of expansion.
“The Save Mart Center put Fresno on the map,” Xiong said. “And Campus Pointe will draw even more people in.”
YOHO HO • Oct 18, 2007 at 5:38 am
Campus Pointe is just another joke as well as Savemart and Parking V. FS is unable to handle traffic in and out of campus and sends no personnel to deal with traffic around 5pm. I pay parking plus tickets and campus roads are bad and traffic just suck! How about fixing the roads on campus, get rid of parking V for the elite, provide faster internet, built a nice Learning Center for the students at Parking V to replace the old mobiles; open a new door at the old library so it can be OPEN at least while building goes on. Forget about Campus Pointe until all the above is fixed! And, don’t forget to go after landlords across Shaw Ave and Cedar Ave to renovate the run on apartments where students live now instead of promoting new housing for elders on FS land. One more thing: how about patrolling the campus and adjacent campus area that is full of crime?
Where was the Student Assoc. while we were losing farm land? I think that the president needs to know that this university is for fresno students and not for new developers’ bank accounts.
PS: re the casino sign for the new library, it is immoral to accept contriibutions from a casino and FS want to advertise it?
YOHO HO • Oct 18, 2007 at 12:38 pm
Campus Pointe is just another joke as well as Savemart and Parking V. FS is unable to handle traffic in and out of campus and sends no personnel to deal with traffic around 5pm. I pay parking plus tickets and campus roads are bad and traffic just suck! How about fixing the roads on campus, get rid of parking V for the elite, provide faster internet, built a nice Learning Center for the students at Parking V to replace the old mobiles; open a new door at the old library so it can be OPEN at least while building goes on. Forget about Campus Pointe until all the above is fixed! And, don’t forget to go after landlords across Shaw Ave and Cedar Ave to renovate the run on apartments where students live now instead of promoting new housing for elders on FS land. One more thing: how about patrolling the campus and adjacent campus area that is full of crime?
Where was the Student Assoc. while we were losing farm land? I think that the president needs to know that this university is for fresno students and not for new developers’ bank accounts.
PS: re the casino sign for the new library, it is immoral to accept contriibutions from a casino and FS want to advertise it?
YOHO HO-TANG • Oct 18, 2007 at 5:28 am
Campus Pointe is just another joke as well as Savemart and Parking V. FS is unable to handle traffic in and out of campus and sends no traffic people to deal with traffic around 5pm. I pay parking plus tickets and campus roads are bad and traffic just suck! How about fixing the roads on campus, get rid of parking V for the elite, provide faster internet, built a nice Learning Center for the students at Parking V to replace the old mobiles; open a new door at the old library so it can be OPEN at least while building goes on. Forget about Campus Pointe until all the above is fixed! And, don’t forget to go after landlords across Shaw Ave and Cedar Ave to renovate the run on apartments where students live now instead of promoting new housing for elders on FS land. One more thing: how about patrolling the campus and adjacent campus area that is full of crime?
Where was the Student Assoc. while we were losing farm land? I think that the president needs to know that this university is for fresno students and not for new developers’ bank accounts.
PS: re the casino sign for the new library, it is immoral to accept contriibutions from a casino and FS want to advertise it?
YOHO HO-TANG • Oct 18, 2007 at 12:28 pm
Campus Pointe is just another joke as well as Savemart and Parking V. FS is unable to handle traffic in and out of campus and sends no traffic people to deal with traffic around 5pm. I pay parking plus tickets and campus roads are bad and traffic just suck! How about fixing the roads on campus, get rid of parking V for the elite, provide faster internet, built a nice Learning Center for the students at Parking V to replace the old mobiles; open a new door at the old library so it can be OPEN at least while building goes on. Forget about Campus Pointe until all the above is fixed! And, don’t forget to go after landlords across Shaw Ave and Cedar Ave to renovate the run on apartments where students live now instead of promoting new housing for elders on FS land. One more thing: how about patrolling the campus and adjacent campus area that is full of crime?
Where was the Student Assoc. while we were losing farm land? I think that the president needs to know that this university is for fresno students and not for new developers’ bank accounts.
PS: re the casino sign for the new library, it is immoral to accept contriibutions from a casino and FS want to advertise it?
Sanjaya Puptaya • May 3, 2007 at 9:30 am
no green spaces or sportsfields/playgrounds in the blueprints……………….what’s up w/ that?
Sanjaya Puptaya • May 3, 2007 at 4:30 pm
no green spaces or sportsfields/playgrounds in the blueprints……………….what’s up w/ that?
Wesley Tompkins • May 1, 2007 at 9:29 pm
bad proposal. another paved lot with garbage stores and restraunts so Fresnans can enlarge their already giant asses. is the fresno state association serious? where is this going to take our campus? hows about a library that stays open beyond 7? me gettin dumb without a stuudie area to use en da evenins. just a wee recommendation. we the studys are the real suckers if this goes thru.
Wesley Tompkins • May 2, 2007 at 4:29 am
bad proposal. another paved lot with garbage stores and restraunts so Fresnans can enlarge their already giant asses. is the fresno state association serious? where is this going to take our campus? hows about a library that stays open beyond 7? me gettin dumb without a stuudie area to use en da evenins. just a wee recommendation. we the studys are the real suckers if this goes thru.
Sofia • Apr 12, 2007 at 5:55 pm
I have to agree. We are not a 8,180 acre Stanford campus that probably needs to have the Stanford mall. We have everything right up the street. Really in walking distance. We are just lazy now. Another damn movie theater, what the hell for. We are in college, we can’t afford it anyhow. And more places to shop. Isn’t that what Riverpark is for? How bout the malls? Didn’t they get a new look? And let us not forget they mentioned housing for senior citizens. Let me think here….. college students, partying, football games, concerts, basketball games and old people? I have nothing against them, but don’t you think they would be bothered by all the noise? I happen to think so. Yeah, probaby not a very smart idea on Fresno States part. Think again people!
Sofia • Apr 13, 2007 at 12:55 am
I have to agree. We are not a 8,180 acre Stanford campus that probably needs to have the Stanford mall. We have everything right up the street. Really in walking distance. We are just lazy now. Another damn movie theater, what the hell for. We are in college, we can’t afford it anyhow. And more places to shop. Isn’t that what Riverpark is for? How bout the malls? Didn’t they get a new look? And let us not forget they mentioned housing for senior citizens. Let me think here….. college students, partying, football games, concerts, basketball games and old people? I have nothing against them, but don’t you think they would be bothered by all the noise? I happen to think so. Yeah, probaby not a very smart idea on Fresno States part. Think again people!
Jen • Mar 27, 2007 at 1:34 pm
People should have figured out what kind of project this was when Fresno State attempted to violate environmental law (Clovis had to sue in order for Fresno State to produce an environmental document). Did you know that document didn’t address what will happen to traffic during an event at the Savemart Center? Anyone who lives near this area knows how horrible the roadways near Fresno State are during a Save Mart Center event. Imagine adding a Riverpark to this area! If Fresno State can’t manage to fix the roads now (look at the mess on Chestnut), how in the world are they going to fulfill all the promises they are making to Fresno and Clovis (they are promising to widen this road and that road…yeah right). Didn’t they promise to have courses in the Save Mart Center when that was being built? I’ve never taken a class there! They are saying that Campus Pointe will have classrooms in the movie theater. Are they kidding? Just a second before that statement they said they were building Campus Pointe in order to pay off the Save Mart Center debt. I hope someone or some organization sues in order to delay this project. What a mess.
Jen • Mar 27, 2007 at 8:34 pm
People should have figured out what kind of project this was when Fresno State attempted to violate environmental law (Clovis had to sue in order for Fresno State to produce an environmental document). Did you know that document didn’t address what will happen to traffic during an event at the Savemart Center? Anyone who lives near this area knows how horrible the roadways near Fresno State are during a Save Mart Center event. Imagine adding a Riverpark to this area! If Fresno State can’t manage to fix the roads now (look at the mess on Chestnut), how in the world are they going to fulfill all the promises they are making to Fresno and Clovis (they are promising to widen this road and that road…yeah right). Didn’t they promise to have courses in the Save Mart Center when that was being built? I’ve never taken a class there! They are saying that Campus Pointe will have classrooms in the movie theater. Are they kidding? Just a second before that statement they said they were building Campus Pointe in order to pay off the Save Mart Center debt. I hope someone or some organization sues in order to delay this project. What a mess.
Joe • Mar 27, 2007 at 1:31 pm
This is just another attempt to further privatize our education system! Fresno City is the epitome of “urban sprawl� and Fresno State follows suite.
Fresno being one of the most agriculturally significant areas in the world and everyday we are loosing land that will never be returned to food production. This is a serious problem and Fresno State should be at the forefront in researching ways of improving urban life and suburanization. Instead its more important to cater to the business that feed the sports monolith. Fresno State has for years neglected its students, just ask the countless departments who have beg for second rate computers, while teaching in inadequate classrooms for little pay.
I saw a great bumper sticker the other day, it went something like this….
“Wouldn’t it be great to live in a world where schools get all the funding they need while the Air Force has to have a bake sale to buy bombs.� Wouldn’t that world be great? All the funding every department at CSUF needed, better pay for teachers, smaller class sizes, MORE CLASSES all while the Bulldog Football team as to raise money through a bake sale!
California State University, Fresno should stand as a beacon of education for the masses and as an institution which promotes a more holistic ideology. Sadly our education system suffers from under funding and sports brings revenue to the school. Fresno State should be ashamed for what they have done, we should all take a close look at Alumni Plantation House and at long lost corn fields (Save Mart Center), where wild chamomile once grew and wonder where our beloved university is headed. Thanks Welty… enjoy the Fresno State Mansion in the Fig Garden while I take remedial courses in a classroom of hundreds….
Joe • Mar 27, 2007 at 8:31 pm
This is just another attempt to further privatize our education system! Fresno City is the epitome of “urban sprawl” and Fresno State follows suite.
Fresno being one of the most agriculturally significant areas in the world and everyday we are loosing land that will never be returned to food production. This is a serious problem and Fresno State should be at the forefront in researching ways of improving urban life and suburanization. Instead its more important to cater to the business that feed the sports monolith. Fresno State has for years neglected its students, just ask the countless departments who have beg for second rate computers, while teaching in inadequate classrooms for little pay.
I saw a great bumper sticker the other day, it went something like this….
“Wouldn’t it be great to live in a world where schools get all the funding they need while the Air Force has to have a bake sale to buy bombs.” Wouldn’t that world be great? All the funding every department at CSUF needed, better pay for teachers, smaller class sizes, MORE CLASSES all while the Bulldog Football team as to raise money through a bake sale!
California State University, Fresno should stand as a beacon of education for the masses and as an institution which promotes a more holistic ideology. Sadly our education system suffers from under funding and sports brings revenue to the school. Fresno State should be ashamed for what they have done, we should all take a close look at Alumni Plantation House and at long lost corn fields (Save Mart Center), where wild chamomile once grew and wonder where our beloved university is headed. Thanks Welty… enjoy the Fresno State Mansion in the Fig Garden while I take remedial courses in a classroom of hundreds….
Yuck • Mar 27, 2007 at 9:28 am
I didn’t mean the actual sports ruin a regular good time, I meant it makes things more difficult for the serious student (ie: a good STUDENT time), which I know isn’t really something we’re concerned about or we wouldn’t be erecting a megamall on campus. It also makes this university look like a big joke. It’s hardly something to take seriously when it’s got TABLE MOUNTAIN plastered on it and a movie theatre with the latest Jackass or Fast And Furious adaptation.
One part that really gets to me is that all this junk probably isn’t really intended for students anyway. Sure the student population will help guarantee there is a spending base nearby, but it’s going to be an annoying strain on most students
And yes, it does suck having to walk far when I’m running late because I’ve been at work all day and need 8 measley units to graduate, which cost me $1,600 and I’m only on campus about four hours a week. Meanwhile, I can’t even go to this ridiculous undergraduate 3-hour geography night class because it’s obviously more important to spend money on hot dogs and season tickets than to learn anything, or make it easier for students to actually show up to finish the painful endurance test that Fresno State is. It’s really just the principle that gets me.
The university is going to be buried inside all this shopping and sports stuff, and it seems ridiculous.
And maybe it’s popular to be “a freaking dork” because people actually have to grow up and stop being 19 eventually. You know – responsibility, jobs, maybe even classes you can’t skip twice a week. Obviously it’s more fun to go to a basketball game and sleep in. But for some people, school actually needs to be about learning. And this should be the focus of our university.
I know I won’t be sending my future kids there if I can help it. It’s just an academic ripoff. And we can go shopping on any part of town.
Yuck • Mar 27, 2007 at 4:28 pm
I didn’t mean the actual sports ruin a regular good time, I meant it makes things more difficult for the serious student (ie: a good STUDENT time), which I know isn’t really something we’re concerned about or we wouldn’t be erecting a megamall on campus. It also makes this university look like a big joke. It’s hardly something to take seriously when it’s got TABLE MOUNTAIN plastered on it and a movie theatre with the latest Jackass or Fast And Furious adaptation.
One part that really gets to me is that all this junk probably isn’t really intended for students anyway. Sure the student population will help guarantee there is a spending base nearby, but it’s going to be an annoying strain on most students
And yes, it does suck having to walk far when I’m running late because I’ve been at work all day and need 8 measley units to graduate, which cost me $1,600 and I’m only on campus about four hours a week. Meanwhile, I can’t even go to this ridiculous undergraduate 3-hour geography night class because it’s obviously more important to spend money on hot dogs and season tickets than to learn anything, or make it easier for students to actually show up to finish the painful endurance test that Fresno State is. It’s really just the principle that gets me.
The university is going to be buried inside all this shopping and sports stuff, and it seems ridiculous.
And maybe it’s popular to be “a freaking dork” because people actually have to grow up and stop being 19 eventually. You know – responsibility, jobs, maybe even classes you can’t skip twice a week. Obviously it’s more fun to go to a basketball game and sleep in. But for some people, school actually needs to be about learning. And this should be the focus of our university.
I know I won’t be sending my future kids there if I can help it. It’s just an academic ripoff. And we can go shopping on any part of town.
JD • Mar 26, 2007 at 11:17 pm
quote yuck: sports ruins a student good time.
this is one of the most outcastish things i’ve ever read. sports are fun for students to attend. not everyone has to go to them, but to the ones who go, it’s not because they want their student good time ruined.
this shopping/movie/restaurant/hotel/whatever thing sounds like a waste. but games at the SMC are fun. games at bulldog stadium are fun.
so what? you couldn’t park in your favorite spot, or — god forbid — had to walk!?! gasp!
did i miss the boat? when did it become so popular to be a freaking dork?
JD • Mar 27, 2007 at 6:17 am
quote yuck: sports ruins a student good time.
this is one of the most outcastish things i’ve ever read. sports are fun for students to attend. not everyone has to go to them, but to the ones who go, it’s not because they want their student good time ruined.
this shopping/movie/restaurant/hotel/whatever thing sounds like a waste. but games at the SMC are fun. games at bulldog stadium are fun.
so what? you couldn’t park in your favorite spot, or ”” god forbid ”” had to walk!?! gasp!
did i miss the boat? when did it become so popular to be a freaking dork?
Harry Minge • Mar 26, 2007 at 2:44 pm
wicked proposal and seems very fishy. investigative journalists where are you??? need some help……i hardly see how this advances the educational mission at Fsu.
Harry Minge • Mar 26, 2007 at 9:44 pm
wicked proposal and seems very fishy. investigative journalists where are you??? need some help……i hardly see how this advances the educational mission at Fsu.
Urie Klemm • Mar 25, 2007 at 3:13 pm
This campus has been in decline since I’ve begun attending. We no longer have a 24-hour study area, our library closes at 8pm (!), the business building computer lab has been vandalized time and time again and looks like complete crap, and the university fails to spend on such things as lighting fixtures. This campus has gone downhill and the president and others are not keeping up with increasing fees and enrollment. The priority is now sports facility upgrades, paying off the SMC $$$ shortfall, and drawing corporate interests to conduct even more business on state property—-not legally supposed to be used for such.
Urie Klemm • Mar 25, 2007 at 10:13 pm
This campus has been in decline since I’ve begun attending. We no longer have a 24-hour study area, our library closes at 8pm (!), the business building computer lab has been vandalized time and time again and looks like complete crap, and the university fails to spend on such things as lighting fixtures. This campus has gone downhill and the president and others are not keeping up with increasing fees and enrollment. The priority is now sports facility upgrades, paying off the SMC $$$ shortfall, and drawing corporate interests to conduct even more business on state property—-not legally supposed to be used for such.
ERIC D. • Mar 25, 2007 at 10:23 am
Lets not forget about agriculture. The univerisity is one of the best Agricultural Colleges in the state. The loss of land to the new shopping center can not be replaced. in the past few years The College of Ag Science and Tech has lost land to The Savemart Center, the new Center for Irrigation Technology, and parking lots. With houses that suround our university, if the Agriculture department wishes to replace the land, it will have to lease or purchase land further from campus. Part of the reason I came to Fresno State was because the Farm Labratroy is on campus with in walking distance, unlike those at Calpoly SLO and Chico. The next thing you know is that they will want to develop our world class vinyard into a new football stadium…its all pointless to me. As Fresno State Students we need to presurve the quality of education at our university which has been declining, not thinking about how far it is to get to the movie theater.
ERIC D. • Mar 25, 2007 at 5:23 pm
Lets not forget about agriculture. The univerisity is one of the best Agricultural Colleges in the state. The loss of land to the new shopping center can not be replaced. in the past few years The College of Ag Science and Tech has lost land to The Savemart Center, the new Center for Irrigation Technology, and parking lots. With houses that suround our university, if the Agriculture department wishes to replace the land, it will have to lease or purchase land further from campus. Part of the reason I came to Fresno State was because the Farm Labratroy is on campus with in walking distance, unlike those at Calpoly SLO and Chico. The next thing you know is that they will want to develop our world class vinyard into a new football stadium…its all pointless to me. As Fresno State Students we need to presurve the quality of education at our university which has been declining, not thinking about how far it is to get to the movie theater.
Benjamin Baxter • Mar 25, 2007 at 2:42 am
If memory serves me correctly, Table Mountain also donated a few million to the library project or — as Grayson would call it — a debacle.
Debacle. That really is a fun word. Debacle.
Benjamin Baxter • Mar 25, 2007 at 9:42 am
If memory serves me correctly, Table Mountain also donated a few million to the library project or — as Grayson would call it — a debacle.
Debacle. That really is a fun word. Debacle.
Yuck • Mar 24, 2007 at 2:52 pm
Why limit Fresno State to an overpriced educationally institution focused on sports when you can turn it into Riverpark II!?
It’s bad enough students have to deal with sports and concert events ruining parking and generally an otherwise normal student good time, but now we’ll have to deal with full-blown shopping? It’s crazy. Let’s not forget the thing is going to be called TABLE MOUNTAIN, which promotes gambling. Gambling isn’t so bad on its own but isn’t it sad when something that preys on the poor and uneducated is plastered all over our supposedly wonderful university? This place is becoming a joke of a school, that’s for sure.
And I doubt any real student culture will come out of this anyway.
“Nothing to do on campus?” Are we that used to being catered to that we don’t know what to do with ourselves if there aren’t plenty of opportunities to waste money right in front of us?
I guess to just be reasonable, I should just hope they don’t close down University Chicken! I love that place!
Yuck • Mar 24, 2007 at 9:52 pm
Why limit Fresno State to an overpriced educationally institution focused on sports when you can turn it into Riverpark II!?
It’s bad enough students have to deal with sports and concert events ruining parking and generally an otherwise normal student good time, but now we’ll have to deal with full-blown shopping? It’s crazy. Let’s not forget the thing is going to be called TABLE MOUNTAIN, which promotes gambling. Gambling isn’t so bad on its own but isn’t it sad when something that preys on the poor and uneducated is plastered all over our supposedly wonderful university? This place is becoming a joke of a school, that’s for sure.
And I doubt any real student culture will come out of this anyway.
“Nothing to do on campus?” Are we that used to being catered to that we don’t know what to do with ourselves if there aren’t plenty of opportunities to waste money right in front of us?
I guess to just be reasonable, I should just hope they don’t close down University Chicken! I love that place!
Hitenda Nadds • Mar 24, 2007 at 12:13 pm
shame shame shame
Hitenda Nadds • Mar 24, 2007 at 7:13 pm
shame shame shame
Hitenda Nadds • Mar 24, 2007 at 12:11 pm
Totally outrageous plan that should draw the ire of students and the Fresno community alike. Shame to the academics at Fresno State for allowing this to proceed. Is the expectation that a movie theatre close to campus will bring in a higher-quality average student? Yeah, that would have made my decision easier. Making comparisons to the UC-D and Stanford plans is an invalid and weak attempt at justifying the cheating of CA taxpayers (to pay off debt on an arena that was money down the toilet in the 1st place) . The G-Town, Standford, and Auburn plans are not retail-centered and have more to do with an interconnected campus community—-all environmentally friendly mind you. Not the proposed parking lot, Jamba Juice, Supercuts, starbucks and 7-11 that we’ve been conned into accepting. A movie theatre that’ll be used for classroom space on weekdays? Ha, yeah right. I sure hope the lobby is still open so I can buy an oversized box of milk duds for $5.50.
Hitenda Nadds • Mar 24, 2007 at 7:11 pm
Totally outrageous plan that should draw the ire of students and the Fresno community alike. Shame to the academics at Fresno State for allowing this to proceed. Is the expectation that a movie theatre close to campus will bring in a higher-quality average student? Yeah, that would have made my decision easier. Making comparisons to the UC-D and Stanford plans is an invalid and weak attempt at justifying the cheating of CA taxpayers (to pay off debt on an arena that was money down the toilet in the 1st place) . The G-Town, Standford, and Auburn plans are not retail-centered and have more to do with an interconnected campus community—-all environmentally friendly mind you. Not the proposed parking lot, Jamba Juice, Supercuts, starbucks and 7-11 that we’ve been conned into accepting. A movie theatre that’ll be used for classroom space on weekdays? Ha, yeah right. I sure hope the lobby is still open so I can buy an oversized box of milk duds for $5.50.
JD • Mar 23, 2007 at 8:45 pm
will it steal business from dog house grill? they’re snooty there, too.
haha.
JD • Mar 24, 2007 at 3:45 am
will it steal business from dog house grill? they’re snooty there, too.
haha.
JS • Mar 23, 2007 at 3:40 pm
I agree with you Mike. This thing has nothing to do with education. It is more about making money. Lets face it shopping and movies dont really have anything to do with education. But on the bright side it will attract more venues.
JS • Mar 23, 2007 at 10:40 pm
I agree with you Mike. This thing has nothing to do with education. It is more about making money. Lets face it shopping and movies dont really have anything to do with education. But on the bright side it will attract more venues.
KV • Mar 23, 2007 at 3:37 pm
I think it has its good and bad. The good things are it will attract new students and people to fresno state. Also as a student some times it is nice to have some where to go when you have long breaks in between class. As of now there isnt that much to do on campus. The bad thing is that it steals business from local retail. Also it is kind of rediculous to place a new theatre there so close to the new one in Clovis.
KV • Mar 23, 2007 at 10:37 pm
I think it has its good and bad. The good things are it will attract new students and people to fresno state. Also as a student some times it is nice to have some where to go when you have long breaks in between class. As of now there isnt that much to do on campus. The bad thing is that it steals business from local retail. Also it is kind of rediculous to place a new theatre there so close to the new one in Clovis.
Mike Greyson • Mar 23, 2007 at 3:35 pm
a total travesty and more on point—-you guessed it, a debacle!!!
Mike Greyson • Mar 23, 2007 at 10:35 pm
a total travesty and more on point—-you guessed it, a debacle!!!
Mike Greyson • Mar 23, 2007 at 3:34 pm
The Campus Pointe project is a debacle. To call this thing even partly academic is intellectually dishonest and a low attempt by the FS administration to promote corporate interests on state land. Disgusting. Where are the provisions for environmental stewardship? Where is the necessity of dense development that will not make people rely on their automobiles? Where have we gone wrong and why do we deserve more garbage like this in a city already saturated by strip malls and urban sprawl?
Mike Greyson • Mar 23, 2007 at 10:34 pm
The Campus Pointe project is a debacle. To call this thing even partly academic is intellectually dishonest and a low attempt by the FS administration to promote corporate interests on state land. Disgusting. Where are the provisions for environmental stewardship? Where is the necessity of dense development that will not make people rely on their automobiles? Where have we gone wrong and why do we deserve more garbage like this in a city already saturated by strip malls and urban sprawl?
Guest • Nov 26, 2010 at 2:30 pm
This thing has nothing to do with education.