Officials for the California State University, Fresno Association and Turner Construction Company announced today (July 26) that Turner would not be the builder of the Save Mart Center at Fresno State.
The officials said the decision was mutually agreed upon by both the Association and Turner.
In February, the Association selected Turner as its first choice to build the $100+ million Save Mart Center. The selection process called for both parties to reach agreement on a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) within a specified period of time.
“Unfortunately, the Association and Turner were unable to reach agreement on the GMP and terms of the contract,” said Deborah Adishian-Astone, executive director of Auxiliary Services at Fresno State and Save Mart Center coordinator. “Therefore, the Association and Turner agreed that the Association should select another builder so as not to jeopardize the scheduled completion of the project.”
Adishian-Astone complimented Turner for the pre-construction effort by its project team.
“We are all obviously disappointed that we were unable to reach an agreement, but the professional effort that has been put forth by Turner during the past few months will enable us to continue to move forward with the construction of theproject,” she said.
Dick Dorais, executive vice president of Turner Construction Company, said the firm wishes Fresno State well.
“The Save Mart Center is an exciting project for both the Fresno community and the university. We mutually agreed it was the appropriate time for both parties to move forward. Turner wishes the Association success on this project,” said Dorais.
Adishian-Astone indicated that the Association had structured the builder selection process to provide alternatives if the two sides could not reach agreement. She said the Association will move immediately to select a new builder. The Association remains committed to involving local subcontractors and suppliers in the project.
The Save Mart Center is a 15,000-18,000 seat state-of-the-art sports and entertainment complex capable of hosting major, national events as well as being home court for the Fresno State Bulldogs.
The official groundbreaking for the center was held in May, and Phase I of the construction began earlier this month with infrastructure improvements and widening of Woodrow Avenue between Shaw and Barstow. Dave Christian Construction is performing this work.
The Save Mart Center will be the largest privately funded building ever constructed in the California State University system. The Center will be located on the east side of the Fresno State campus, on the north side of Shaw Avenue, between Woodrow Avenue and Chestnut Avenue, adjacent to the State Route 168 interchange.
