As lawmakers are acknowledging the need to do something about crumbling buildings on the state university campuses, some want to cut athletic facilities from the to-do list. The thinking is that funds could be raised privately for athletic buildings. Still, if universities chose to press the issue, they could argue that gymnasiums and stadiums are state buildings, and no less deserving of state care than classrooms. Meanwhile, the House-passed help this week — $15 million a year for five years — wouldn’t make much headway on the full $727 million work list. At that rate of investment, it would take half a century to finish the repairs needed now.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
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15 Comments
I seriously question that price tag. I never looked heavily into this, but I would really like to see the breakdown of that cost and why it is so expensive. You can almost build an entire University from the ground up with that much money.
Let’s take WSU for instance. I cannot think of one building that needs serious maintance to. Some of the older buildings on the Fairmount College side have all been ungraded and renovated in the last 1990’s. The Engineering building is getting an entire new section built as we speak. The CAC has been updated. Koch Arena is done. I’ve been to every building on that campus, and I cannot think of one serious maintance and upgrade issues that needs to be done.
I would like them to itemized list of this maintance backlog. I’m thinking this is more of a wish list of University Presidents than an actual repair backlog list.
But that being said. I would agree that any part of this repair funding request should go into renovating stadiums. They can do private fund raising, such as what WSU did for Koch Arena.
Correction:
I would agree that any part of this repair funding request should go into renovating stadiums.
To:
I would agree that any part of this repair funding request should NOT go into renovating stadiums.
If you spend money on the proverbial ‘classroom’ only you might confuse KU or KSU as being educational facilities.
Maybe if I heard more about KU or KSU outside of the sports world I would care.
Every attempt possible should be taken to find private funding for the rennovations. Why spend tax payers money when private funds could cover the bill? I think that should be a no brainer. This goes not only for the athletics but any department that may have contributors willing to cover the bill. I have often wondered what the state universities (particularly K-State and KU) do with profits from all the merchandise they sell. Could that be used for some rebuilding?
A comment, which may or may not be pertinent to the discussion.
It is my understanding that athletic facilities are normally built by funds raised by the quasi-public corporations (read: athletic departments) which actually run the athletic programs. Title to these improvements is conveyed to the State upon their completion, which places the burden of maintenance, etc., upon the university.
I have always believed that the burden of maintenance, repairs, etc. of these facilities should be borne by the athletic departments, and not by the State, unless and until the said quasi-public corporations are abolished, and direct control of the athletic department is returned to the various universities. BTW, the licensing fees from the sale of the merchandise mentioned by An Educator above go directly to the athletic departments, and not the university. Is this great or what?
Sports are taken FAR too seriously in America, and it’s sad.
You know, P_Mom, sports are just another form of entertainment. I think all entertainment, and those who provide same, are taken too seriously in our country. I wonder from time to time whether we, as Americans, have “royalty envy”, and make our entertainers our “royalty”, as our form of government doesn’t allow for the same.
Continuing, for just a bit on my off-topic post, I am an advocate of handling all college sports under the NCAA Division III rules, that is, no athletic scholarships, all students participating are otherwise qualified for admission to the school, etc., and may receive financial aid on the same bases as the others.
Two daughters who have attended colleges which are D-III has convinced me this is the way it should be. No over-glorification of a subset of the student body merely due to size, athletic ability, etc. The young men and women who are competitors are real “student athletes”, and known more to their colleagues as other students who happen to be football players, etc., rather than football players.
I promise I’ll stop now, really.
Happily violating the promise above made for one more thought: a review of alumni contributions to these institutions, and the size of the endowments at each, lead me to believe the absence of big time Div. I sports hasn’t hurt these two things one bit.
One more violation: a look at the two schools in question’s web sites shows that both have received, to date, the largest number of applications for admission in the history of each. Sort of shoots the thought that admission numbers are dependent upon big time athletics, huh?
That’s it on my off-topic posts. Really…until another thought strikes me.
So people go to college and learn how to make a lot of money but do not want support the very foundation of their wealth.I guess they didn’t learn anything.
I attended a private school on student loans and parental assistance. Last time I checked my education was the second largest expense I’ve had, next to a house.
I already paid them. I am the foundation of my wealth. Knowledge/education is useless until you use it. It is worthless by itself.
But I guess some people didn’t learn not to keep paying for items already bought and paid for.
Joe,
That’s a nice report on WSU buildings but does it match what future renamed Wichita Shockers University says today on maintenance and upgrades to their buildings?
State money should first go to the class rooms and gathering places for students. Dorms as well. Whatever is called “campus housing” for students, staff…
But NOT PRESIDENTS or Athletic Directors. Fixing up those places of stay or work should come from foundations, private dollars.
Both Presidents and Athletic Directors are paid highly.
Women’s sports facilities should get funds.
Mens sports have the ability to raise money if they try hard enough. To keep facilities running, use some state money. But for new buildings or large upgrades to men’s sports facilities should come from mostly private donations or foundations.
WSU makes little money in comparison with sports marketing licensing like KU and KSU. So WSU’s athletic department gets less money to use that way.
In the end, its WSU who needs more students for revenue and the wider community and county included needs a full replacement for the Coliseum’s dirt events.
County, city and investors all partnered with WSU to build a stadium for a variety of events on dirt, grass, turf, solid surface or basketball courts and its the facility necessary for the return of WSU football.
The key revenue program WSU lacks.
Sports are important money makers for college and every sport must reach some sort of championship game.
WSU playing D1 football, doesn’t make them quick to win a National Championship but it does mean maximized dollars going to Divison 1 colleges to play on the road. If they have TV packages is even better.
Going on the road could make WSU a lot of revenue in football.
BCS and whatever comes next is making game schedules so much more important. TV wants Championship games to show as content.
So lets hope Topeka finances fixing up college classrooms and WSU chooses the path for ultimate revenue, return of the football program, done in the right way.
Couny and city truly needs the event facility to replace both what the Coliseum did for dirt shows and includes what Cessna stadium did in number of seats, the grass field to play football on.
Topeka would help promote our facility for events that pass our state today. Like the Big 12 Championship football game that travels around.
Event facility that would bring more traffic to the airport. Southwest may choose to fly from here if guarenteed flights for teams to come here or when WSU football and fans travel.
That kind of guarenteed scheduling plus rest of the flying public included.
Within 6 states around us WSU could travel by bus to road games. So many D1 teams around us to play if WSU has an independent schedule.
If we had a “Bowl” eligible stadium, it would be attractive facility for any college football team come to Wichita. Based on if TV would show the game and gate receipts.
Proudman:”Maybe if I heard more about KU or KSU outside of the sports world I would care.”
KSU–Since 1975:*More Rhodes Scholars than any other public university.*Second in the number of Fullbright and Truman Scholars nationwide.
The problem continues to be antiquated infrastructure. I grew up in Manhattan, my father worked as an electrician at K-State for over 40 years.The power plant that serves the university was built in 1885. The steam tunnels that still provide heat to many of the older buildings on campus were dug about the same time.BOTH ARE STILL IN USE TODAY.What part of this do you education-hating morons not understand???
More Rhodes Scholars than any other PUBLIC school? Now there is something to be proud of.
Kind of like winning the NIT. You to can be the 65th best team in the nation!
For ProudMan: K-State is #1 amount public universities in Rhodes, Marshall, Truman, Goldwater and Udall scholarships. It is also #7 OVERALL, behind Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Duke and Brown, and just ahead of Chicago, Cornell and MIT.
As a recent K-State graduate in architecture (which was recently rated the #12 architecture program in the country, among private AND public schools), I can tell you that the facilities maintenance needs at K-State are very real. Check out this web site for some examples. http://www.kansasregents.org/download/Maintenance/KSU%20Pics.pdf
The problem is years and years of neglect by the state. The state is the one that owns (nearly) all of the buildings on college campuses, and they are not paying to maintain them. What private business would have $4.5 billion worth of buildings and infrastructure and not allocate sufficient money for maintenance?
I think adding a provision to the bill prohibiting money from being spent on athletic facilities is a moot point. All of the recent athletic upgrades at K-State were paid for with private money. University presidents are smart enough to know that if they spent maintenance money on athletics that the public would be up in arms, and rightfully so.