FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Dec. 1, 2006

University Communications 559.278.2795

Madden Library:  $95M library expansion project is underway.  Construction documents are being finalized.  This spring the construction trailers will be set up at Maple and San Ramon on the old San Ramon 3 building site, and the construction management team will begin preparing documents for bids to sub-contractors.  The older sections of the library on the north side of the building will be demolished during early summer 2006, and construction of the new structure will begin shortly thereafter with a completion date of fall 2008.  The four-story south wing of the library, which was built in 1980, will be remodeled and connected to the new structure during this time.

Approximately 900,000 volumes from the Henry Madden Library have been moved to an off-campus site.  Books are now requested in person, by fax or online and are retrieved and delivered to the Circulation Desk for pickup several times each day. 

In August 2005 the entrance to the library was relocated to the doors on the east side of the solarium.  Most of the library services have been relocated to the south wing including circulation, reference, curriculum/juvenile and special collections.  Interlibrary Borrowing and Lending has been relocated to the Renaissance Room.  Disabled Students Services will be relocated to the University Center in the former Carl’s Jr. at the end of the spring semester 2006.  Alternate study areas to replace the library space that is lost during the demolition and construction have been identified and are being publicized on campus.

When completed, the library will have about 323,000 square feet for reading rooms and study areas, collections, library administration, individual study carrels, group study rooms, specialized libraries and special collections, and the President’s administrative space on the fourth floor.

Go to http://www.maddenlibrary.org/ for more information on this project.

Technology Infrastructure Initiative (TII Project):  TII will increase the speed of our data networks and provide a foundation for increased speed and reliability for voice, video and data.  The principle construction phase (Phase I) to build the outside network and wire the buildings will be completed by July 2006.  The exterior construction of three buildings on campus to provide aggregation locations for communications infrastructure and equipment is complete.  The interiors are being finished to house new network electronic equipment (included in Phase II).  Information Technology Services (ITS) is working closely with the consulting services of SBC/AT&T on a network design which includes enhanced voice, video and data services.  ITS and the Senior Technology Leadership Team (STLT) will be reviewing proposals to upgrade the network design above the baseline architecture for maximum service and support  the campus long term technological needs.  Installation and cutovers will begin in the summer of 2006 with the start of Phase II of the project.  Phase II includes the acquisition and installation of new network equipment in all of the state owned buildings to make use of the infrastructure installed in Phase I.  The project is scheduled for completion in the last quarter of 2006.  This is a $21 million project funded through Proposition 47 and the CSU Chancellor’s Office.

Go to http://www.csufresno.edu/tii  for more information on this project.

Planning Initiatives:

Master plan architects Zimmer Gunsul Frasca (ZGF) and Omni Means are the consulting architects working with the strategic planning committee to develop a comprehensive campus master plan. The architects are currently meeting with the deans and senior administrators in academic affairs.  In the coming months they will be meeting with student groups, city public transit officials and a wide range of campus faculty and staff. 

The planning consultants will work closely with the campus wide coordinating group to explore options for infrastructure needs, parking, and landscape.  They are charged with aligning all of the campus efforts for the campus long-term growth. 

The planners will engage in an in-depth process of interviewing, fact-gathering, , conducting informal surveys and assessing existing data about a wide range of factors that will influence campus growth and development.  The planners will analyze, assemble and report back to the coordinating body and strategic planning committee on a regular basis. 

This effort will coordinate with several other plans specifically the strategic plan, academic plan, enrollment plan, technology plan and various facilities plans i.e. utility master plan, vehicular/pedestrian circulation plan, parking plan and the landscape plan.  These efforts will assist the campus in defining its infrastructure and long term plans for its grounds and facilities that will help ensure the campus is strategically prepared for future growth and development.

West Complex (Student Recreation Center): This $17.6 million project broke ground on schedule in October 2004.  This month the contractor is finishing up the interior of the Center and is installing irrigation for the site landscaping.  The Grand Opening is scheduled for February 3^rd, 2006. 

The building was funded with student fees and private gifts.  It is a modern fitness and recreation center for the students and an architectural compliment to the adjacent Save Mart Center.  The complex includes a Student Recreation Center with four practice gymnasiums and two academic-related components: The Leon and Pete Peters Educational Center, a 300-seat state of the art tiered auditorium, and The Lyles Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship which will still be under construction at the time of the grand opening and should be completed by March 31^st, 2006.

International Center for Water Technology (ICWT):  The International Center for Water Technology (ICWT) has formed a partnership with Central Valley Business Incubator (CVBI) that will make it possible to move ahead with the construction of a new building on campus to house both of these entities.  The new entity will be called CVBI-ICWT.  CVBI promotes and incubates business development in the Central Valley; ICWT will provide technical assistance by evaluating new products developed by entrepreneurs.  This modern test facility will provide independent testing and performance certification for pumps and other water technology equipment.  The facility will also be an educational learning lab for students in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology and the College of Engineering and Computer Science and will serve as an incubator facility for businesses specializing in water, irrigation and clean-energy.  In addition, the new facility will have a 72 kw photo-voltaic array to generate electrical energy for the campus grid and provide additional educational and research opportunities.

CVBI is the recipient of a federal grant from the Economic Development Agency totaling $2.3 million.  The partnership includes funding from ICWT for construction and equipment of approximately $1.5M.  The building site is on the south-west corner of Barstow and Chestnut.  Construction will begin in April 2006 and will be completed in the fall of 2006.

Campus Pointe (45-Acre Parcel):    Progress is being made in the planning of the mixed-use commercial development of the parcel located at the northeast corner of Chestnut and Shaw Avenues. The development will be done by Kashian Enterprises, LP and will be known as Campus Pointe.  Campus Pointe will include 180,000 square feet of retail and office space, a full-service business hotel (approximately 240 rooms), a 14-screen Megaplex theater, and over 500 units of multi-family and senior housing.

The University will engage in a ground lease with the California State University, Fresno Association (www.auxiliary.com), one of the university’s auxiliary organizations, who will sublease the ground to the developer.  Approval of the development plan and associated agreements was received from the CSU Board of Trustees in November 2005.  Further plans including certification and approval of the Environmental Impact Report will be submitted to the CSU Board of Trustees in spring 2006.

Wireless Upgrade:  The PHS building is currently being added to the wireless network.  The remaining wireless expansion is being integrated into the Telecommunications Infrastructure Project (TII).  

University High School: The planning continues for a permanent facility for the University High School to be sited in the open amphitheater between the Speech Arts and the Music buildings.  This project is currently undergoing appropriate legal and procedural review pertaining to a charter school on a university campus. The university is working on agreements with Fresno Unified regarding the land lease and hopes to have a finalized agreement with the school district by the end of January.  Once the agreements are in place the project will go to the CSU Board of Trustees for review.  In a parallel process, the design and site approval documents have been sent to the California Department of Education, Office of Public School Construction for review.  Once approved by both entities, construction drawings will be finalized, and the project will go to bid.    Construction is anticipated to start in summer 2006. 

Repave Barstow Avenue and Sidewalk Improvements: Facilities repaved Barstow between Cedar and Chestnut in the fall of 2005. This included also paving the farm roads north of O’Neill Park.  Sidewalk repair to replace broken and uneven sidewalks on campus began in the fall of 2005 and is ongoing.

University Restaurant: Over the winter break the University Restaurant (UR) got a "new look". New paint and new light fixtures and new carpet are being installed. The UR will reopen for customers on Monday, January 23, 2006.