On Feb. 1, the Bold New U forum showcased the latest renderings and featured a discussion about the floor plans, costs, logistics and hopes for Bold New U.

Dr. Frank Lamas, vice president for student affairs and enrollment management, began the event by introducing the steering committee for the new student union.

Members of the committee are: Dr. Lamas; Fresno State Provost, Dr. Lynnette Zelezny; vice president for administration and associate vice president for auxiliary services, Deborah Adishian-Astone; and Paula Castadio, vice president for university advancement.

Lamas expressed his hopes for the Bold New U saying, “It’s a place where we hope for a sense of belonging, people to have a chance to be involved [and] engaged in a very vibrant student life facility.”

In addition to the Bold New U, a privately funded faculty center is proposed in the same facility.

Zelezny said the idea of including a faculty center is unique because it would make the university the only one in the nation to have faculty within a student union.

Zelezny said the proposed 10,000 square-foot center is expected to be a “dynamic, energetic space [where you can] really see the faculty in the center as being something like a start-up in the Silicon Valley where the faculty can come and students as well would join in to do co-creation-related collaborations.”

Lamas encouraged the campus community not to get too attached to the current renderings of the building. He said that if the referendum passes, more solid building plans would be developed.

As for the existing student union, Lamas said that facility will continue to be used and maintain its part of the “synergy” between the library and the new facility.

So what would be the impact of a facility like this?

Lamas explained the new facility will have meeting spaces, new healthy eating options, a space for student organizations, a student leadership center, a veteran’s resource center, gathering spaces for both formal and informal meetings, a welcome center and an auditorium that would have space for 1,000 to 1,500 people.

Why another auditorium if we have the USU, satellite student union (SSU) and Save Mart Center?

Lamas said, “One of the things that we find when people are planning events on campus is that we don’t have that middle-size facility.”

The SSU can hold approximately 800 people and the Save Mart Center can hold more than 15,000 people.

“So there’s nothing really in between, when you want to bring together gatherings of 1,000 to 1,500 [people],” Lamas added.

He emphasized that a new student union is crucial to a thriving campus because the university is a residential campus, as opposed to a commuter campus.

“I’m not a big proponent of the word ‘commuter’ because, really, half of our students live within 10 minutes of the university and three-quarters live within 15 minutes. So in essence, we are less of a commuter campus in many ways,” Lamas said.

Geraldine Panelo Elizondo, assistant director of student involvement, said that according to the university’s geocode map, approximately 47.7 percent of students live 10 miles from campus.

In a geocode map, Fresno State students’ addresses are entered to find geographical information in relation to the campus such as distance from campus and travel time.

The percentage does not include online students and students who live in student housing and at Palazzo at Campus Pointe.

Since most students live so close to school, there is not necessarily a rush to get home right away.

A study conducted for the Off Campus Student Life Initiative by student involvement found that out of 4,400 undergraduate and graduate students, 61 percent spend time on campus when they are not in class.

Thirty-nine percent of students answered that they spend one to five hours on campus outside of class time.

So, what are students doing and where are they spending time on campus during those hours.

Panelo Elizondo said she hopes the Bold New U will provide a place of engagement and a feeling of belonging — a place where students can lounge, study, eat, meet up with friends and enjoy the atmosphere.

The Bold New U will be funded with a student fee increase that will go directly to the building of the student union and fundraising the first $15 million.

“We are looking at about $80 million that would be financed over 25 to 30 years,” Lamas said.

Students will not see the student fee increase until the building is finished and operating.

Once the building is open, students will incur a $200 increase in their student fees. The fees will pay for student employees.

Lamas said approximately 81 percent of Fresno State students receive financial aid, according to a study conducted a year ago.

The same study said 51 percent of students do not pay their own tuition because it is covered through grants.

Ultimately, 19 percent of students are expected to be paying the student fee increase without the benefit of financial aid.

It will be a person-by-person determination of financial aid eligibility to cover the proposed increase in student fees, Lamas said.

What will the fees cover?

The fees will cover the costs of student employee jobs, programs, maintenance, staffing and more.

At the end of the presentation, a question and answer session was encouraged between students and the driving forces behind the new student union so that students could express their comments and concerns.

Concerns students had regarding the project included: graduate students’ needs; the noise the construction will bring; parking during construction; availability of breastfeeding stations; funding and tuition increases.

Lamas addressed what it would mean if the referendum does not pass.

“Well, you’ll have 100,000 less square feet to do all the things we talked about earlier. Certainly we would probably need to at some point look at what we would do in the existing facility, he said”

The current USU has had multiple renovations and additions to meet the needs of students.

Approximately 40 university students, faculty and staff attended the forum. Pizza and refreshments were provided along with Bold New U tote bags, phone stands and sunglasses.

Fresno State students will have the opportunity to vote on the fee referendum from March 28-30 online.