Construction begins on Locatelli Center

By Ann Cheung

Despite being put on hold indefinitely in May, Sept. 28 marks the official ground breaking for the Locatelli Student Activities Center.

The student center, named after former Santa Clara president and Jesuit priest Paul Locatelli, S.J., will be located in Alumni Park, adjacent to Buck Shaw Stadium.

The process took approximately three years, including about two years of discussion with student leadership, with three different student body presidents involved.

The building's design took six months to finalize under architect Brent Downing of Devcon, Inc., according to Joe Sugg, assistant vice president of university operations.

With two levels, each measuring approximately 6,000 square feet, there will be plenty of room for several student groups to set up offices. Chartered Student Organizations like Associated Students, Activities Programming Board and Santa Clara Community Action Program, which currently have separate offices in the basement of Benson Memorial Center will share the top floor.

"The space will be different," said Jonathan Gray, director of the Center for Student Leadership. "I think there is going to be a great energy in that room."

And with many student groups moving from the Benson basement to the new student center, decisions have yet to be made about how to best utilize that space. Prior to the move, the plan for what will fill the center must be finalized.

"Of course, everyone has opinions about what should go where, so we will have to play around with that," said Gray.

In regard to the large lower level of the new Locatelli building, Sugg said it will be a multipurpose space.

"It will be a very flexible place for students to schedule events: catered dinners, dances, rock shows, movies, career day," he said.

Gray also showed excitement about the space.

"It will allow us to host events that we haven't been able to host before because of the size," said Gray. "There's often feedback from the large concerts: 'Why is it always hip-hop or mainstream music? Why can't there be country western or alternative?' Well, the reality is we wouldn't be able to sell enough tickets, but the new venue will let us do things like that."

The building will also be environmentally friendly in many ways, meeting standards even higher than the national and California standards for sustainability.

There will be light chimneys, which will allow for more natural light on both levels. There will also be features installed to create a more natural way of cooling the building, such as fans at the top of the building to pull out hot air and vents on the lower level to filter in cool air.

The building is going to be designed so that solar panels can be added in the future as well.

In terms of finances, Sugg said the university has the funds to complete the building. As of last spring, the plans for the project were postponed.

"The uncertainty last spring with regard to the market and to enrollment this fall necessitated a more conservative spending," Sugg said.

The uncertainty included waiting for the estimated $9.5 million, which was supposed to be partially funded by a private donor.

Sophomore Lauren Murray does not seem to have a very positive outlook on the school's new student center.

"I think it's a cool idea, but I don't think it's the right time to have it," she said. "There are so many other parts of school the money should be going to, particularly financial aid."

There is also a plan for something called a 'new main street.'

"It is a pedestrian walkway between Benson center and the Locatelli building," Gray said. "There's a plan in place to develop that walk way better to be a whole lot more attractive: kind of cobblestone and black banners. Preliminary drawings were discussed this summer, but no solid timeline."

Contact Ann Cheung at (408) 554-4546 or accheung@scu.com.