Renovations: Who should pay and are they warranted?

With consistent tuition fee increases, being a student at a California State University is becoming harder and harder—especially these days with the economy going in the direction it has been. This being the case, have you ever asked, ‘where does my money go in these fee increases?’

Earlier this semester students have gotten a taste of where the fee increases are going with the opening of the new Henry Madden Library—minus a few pieces of furniture.

When I say taste, I mean that the library renovation is only the first of many, as part of the university̢۪s twenty-five year Master Plan.

Included in the construction, will be a three story parking structure and an aquatics center, with a current completion date of 2012.

What really pains me is the fact that I am not a student athlete, therefore I probably will never get to swim in the aquatics center assuming, it is even completed before my graduation.

On the plus side of a new aquatics center, is the possibility for creating a superior facility that will hopefully attract top notch athletes for swimming, diving and water polo programs. I do not know that this will happen, but I must to say I would not mind helping fund its construction if those were the kinds of things that came with the aquatics center.

As for the new parking structure, I could not disagree more with the idea. I mean this in the least hypocritically way as possible. Living close to campus, I walk to class everyday, some classes being farther than others, but nonetheless I still make the walk.

Everybody makes a fuss over parking, but look in the back, it̢۪s there! So what if you have to park in the back, I̢۪m sure every student could use the walk.

Twenty-five years is a long time if you don̢۪t know what it is you are paying for. Not every student will be thrilled to hear that they are paying for university renovations that we will not see in their entirety for more than twenty years.

It is frustrating enough ending every school year just to be haunted by the thought of how to pay for next years̢۪ tuition.

There comes a point where you have to decide if staying in school is more important than fee increases. Unfortunately, this is a harsh reality, one that may make it difficult for some students to keep up with the fee increases.

Like it or not, twenty-five years from now Fresno State will be unrecognizable to current students, as renovations like the Madden Library, aquatic center and parking structure will bring changes, campus wide. With the plan in progress, it seems as if there̢۪s no stopping it; I just hope students do not end up paying for most of the bill.