WHEN

Tuesday, May 6  • 11 to 11:30 a.m.

WHERE

Construction site adjacent to Downing Planetarium
(San Ramon and Maple Ave. – media access from Barstow)

WHO

• Dr. John D. Welty - President, California State University, Fresno
• Dr. Kin-Pin Wong - Dean, College of Science and Mathematics
• Dr. Ellen Gruenbaum- Dean, College of Social Science

Media Info/Visuals

Brief comments precede detonation of three seismic charges to symbolically break ground for start of construction phase of the 18.5 million Science II Building. A scale model of the building and enlarged artist renderings will also be on display. Seismic profiling equipment with geophones used for the ground-shaking will also be on display as one example of the programs the new building will house.

Background

The new three-story, 73,000-square-foot building will add advanced classrooms and new labs to the campus for psychology and earth and environmental sciences as well as 100 new faculty offices. It will house departmental offices for Earth and Environmental Science, Psychology and Criminology plus the dean's complex for the College of Science and Mathematics. Science II will include graduate research and special instructional areas for the physics department to support Downing Planetarium research needs.

The final bid process is currently under way with construction scheduled to begin in early summer and be completed by January 2005.

CONTACT

Tom Uribes, 278-5366 (After 9 a.m.: 250-8459)

WEB

www.fresnostatenews.com (for full release)

MEDIA ACCESS/Parking

News media park behind the Dairy Processing Unit on Barstow Ave., for closest access to the detonation scene.

Access: On Barstow, use the entrance west of the Dairy Unit (across Horse Unit) between Maple and Woodrow. University Traffic Officers will be on duty to assist. Unmarked media cars: please show traffic officers your news credentials.