Projects to force relocations

David J. Olender / Photo Editor


In one year, San Diego State students will face a 200,000 square foot space shortage. Next May, Aztec Center, Nasatir Hall and Storm Hall will go offline for renovation and expansion, and thousands of students, faculty and administrators will have to relocate.

Nothing is certain. High-level executives such as Associated Students President James Poet do not yet know where their offices will be located in the interim. With available space at a premium, the university is brainstorming for options, Aztec Center Director Lynn Cacha said.

“We have been working very diligently and closely with the university to try to identify available spaces,” Cacha said. “We are looking at approximately 200,000 square feet of space combined that will be offline.”

A member from the student organization AB Samahan, who wished to remain anonymous, said the administration has no plans for relocation and his student organization would pay the price.

“I’m really worried about Modern Space because AB Samahan has an office in the Aztec Center,” he said. “We do one of our biggest events (there), which is our high school conference, which attracts 1,000 students. Next year, we are really worried that, because it’s going to be closed, where are we going to put a thousand students?”

He said student organizations do not understand the seriousness of the situation and will start to panic two months before Aztec Center closes because of lack of planning.

When told about the student’s concerns, Cacha reiterated that the administration is not sitting on its hands, but instead is robustly searching through every available space on and around campus for possible relocation sites. Cacha also said the No. 1 priority would be to find prime space for the student organizations. Student organizations waiting for answers could potentially be informed in the early spring, Cacha said.

There has been some talk of moving student organizations into trailers, but Cacha said that would only be used as a last resort.

One consequence of the renovation is the massive California Sycamore at the heart of Aztec Center will have to be cut down and removed. Cacha said the administration has looked into options to save the 40-year-old tree, but to no avail. Replanting the tree would involve a two-year process to remove the giant root system without damaging it. Cacha also said she has learned it would be a very expensive process.

A.S. Green Commissioner Erica Johnson said she is looking into the matter and A.S. is very aware of the tree’s importance.

“The tree in Aztec Center is the central focus point of the current student union and has great sentimental value to SDSU,” Johnson said. “Associated Students is most aware of the emotional attachment to the tree and the organization plans to preserve its memory.”

The administration’s search for space has left no stone unturned, Cacha said. Everything has been considered, including vacant fraternity houses, resident halls, Alvarado Medical Center, community centers and local hotels.

In the case of Storm and Nasatir Halls, Cacha said space for classes and faculty will receive first priority. Any possible relocation of Aztec Center franchises such as Starbucks, Steak Escape and Louie’s Suds & Sun Pub, is the responsibility of Aztec Shops, Cacha said.

R.D. Williams, director of Campus Relations and Commercial Development for Aztec Shops, said that when considering which retail stores will receive priority for relocation, Aztec Shops will consider “whether the activity is critical to the mission of the university.”

Modern Space will bring in more student services, as well as more revenue for A.S. However, Cacha said the process is expected to be a tough transition.
“We don’t have this infinite supply of space that we can have the luxury of picking and choosing what we want,” Cacha said. “It’s like having all these puzzle pieces and figuring out how they are all going to fit.”

A.S. BRIEF: 12-08-08

Kowalow seeks endorsement in saving pub
Last week’s council meeting was visited by a group of students who lobbied Associated Students to save Louie’s Suds & Sun Pub. Their spokesman, psychology senior Joseph Kowalow, presented A.S. with a large folder, which he said represented 2,000 signatures.

Louie’s Pub will most likely have to move off campus when Aztec Center closes for renovations for the Modern Space project.

Kowalow’s message was twofold: He respectfully but firmly called on A.S. to support relocating the pub while telling the administration, which Kowalow said was improperly guiding A.S. opinion, to “back off.”

“You’re here to represent (student) interests, not the interests of the administration,” Kowalow said. “These students have demanded that you either support this initiative or we will start an organization that actually will accurately represent the wants and needs (of students).”

Kowalow also chided the university for having no clear plans to relocate businesses when Aztec Center closes next year.

A.S. President James Poet said he was not going to allow the council to debate the subject at that time, but he did open the floor for questions.

Health & Human Services Representative Kelley Stewart asked if A.S. has control over allowing Louie’s Pub to stay. Poet said A.S. does not have any control over whether or not Louie’s Pub will remain. While the Modern Space project was planned by A.S. and voted on by students, it is Aztec Shops that will eventually decide what franchises will be included in Modern Space.

Kowalow said he was aware of that, but he wanted A.S. support in saving the pub. The council made no decisions at that time.

Green Love proposal passed
The third time appears to be the charm for Erica Johnson, the A.S. Green Commissioner, tasked with spearheading the Green Love initiative. After three weeks spent fine-tuning her ideas, A.S. approved her most recent round of proposals for greening the campus in the upcoming spring semester.

Green Love will be soliciting students to sign a pledge saying they will commit to recycling all products such as plastics and glass, use reusable bags for shopping and to abstain from buying bottled water “whenever possible.”
According to Johnson, these green recruits will serve as models for the rest of the campus by spreading the green message to others and wearing a commitment wristband, which will be visible to other students.

One councilmember was worried whether participating in the pledge would be mandatory, but Johnson assured A.S. that no councilmembers would be forced to sign the pledge.
Johnson arrived at her latest round of changes after consulting with Aztec Shops about a controversial proposal to encourage students to abstain from purchasing water bottles — a big seller for Aztec Shops. After recommending a slight language change to the proposal, Aztec Shops gave its support to the measure.

A.S. members reflect on jobs

Glenn Connelly / Assistant Photo Editor

Associated Students executive elections often unravel into pulse-pounding affairs where dreams are crushed or made. In contrast, the A.S. representative elections are quieter, but no less important. Representatives have the duty of making sure the student voice is heard on the A.S. council.

The A.S. election next semester will happen from March 16 to 19. Representatives for seven colleges will be voted on, plus an eighth category for undeclared majors, Arts and Letters representative Ignacio Prado said.
Representatives relay information between their specific colleges and Associated Students. Each representative attends the weekly A.S. meeting, possesses a vote and must also sit on one additional board.

Health and Human Services Representative Kelley Stewart said her position has been invaluable because it allowed her to better understand the university.
“My experience has been a surprise in that it has been very positive,” Stewart said. “It’s been extremely valuable to see the interaction between our administration and students. Just seeing … the impact that we can make and how our voices are heard and really respected among the administration, which tends to make a lot of changes.”

Knowledge of the inner workings of the university is power, Prado said. He said that after his long A.S. experience, he can fix a lot of problems with a phone call, because he knows exactly which administrator to call.

Representatives hear about university happenings first, Stewart said. The much-discussed Instructionally Related Activities Fee was introduced to the A.S. Council before it circulated to the student body at large. The council also officially endorsed the IRA Fee with 21 council members in favor, 17 opposed, and four members abstained from voting. The decision was close and the meetings leading up to the vote were fueled by vigorous discussion among council members.

As the council expands to include more student organizations, the A.S. council meetings are taking up more time, sometimes lasting more than three hours. This development can definitely be “frustrating” to some members, engineering representative Amanda Pascoe said.

“The most difficult thing that I’ve expressed is probably getting to speak in a meeting because there are so many of us and everyone has an opinion, which is a good thing,” Pascoe said. “But it helps you keep your opinion short, concise, to the point.”

Learning how to conduct meetings in a timely fashion while still allowing students optimum expression is a challenge that future A.S. administrations will have to address, Prado said. Some student organizations are considered underrepresented and therefore receive a seat on the council in order to ensure their voices are heard, Pascoe said.

The College of Arts and Letters and the School of Engineering are umbrella organizations that include many clubs related to that school. A representative such as Prado in the College of Arts and Letters speaks for many student organizations, while Jewish Student Union representative Alexi Biener speaks only for that student organization. She is elected by an internal process within JSU.

Representatives must serve on at least one board in addition to attending the A.S. council meeting. Some of the boards include the Rules Committee, which handles matters of A.S. law, the Caucus, which advises A.S. on diversity policies and the Finance Board, which approves A.S. budgets. Attending meetings and participating on boards and A.S. tabling in Aztec Center is mandatory for representatives.

Representatives do have perks with their positions. They receive an A.S. benefits card and priority registration for classes. Representatives also attend retreats. One of their most recent ones was to Julian. Their time at retreats, however, is spent in training workshops and information sessions rather than vacationing.

A representative will get as much or as little as they invest in the experience, Stewart said.

Prado said potential representative candidates should be both driven and willing to “give back to SDSU.”

“It’s all about commitment. If you’re committed to doing what it takes to get that seat, you’ll be OK,” Prado said. “You can’t come in there trying to get something out of it for yourself. You have to have...an affinity for service. You have to feel like you want to give back to SDSU or else it all becomes a lot of work.”

A.S. executive elections near

Glenn Connelly / Assistant Photo Editor

So you want to be an Associated Students executive?

An executive has a very long to-do list, one that is never finished.

A simple walk across campus can turn into an impromptu question and answer session with a curious student. Executives must become masters of school policy, be proficient in public speaking and take the scrutiny that comes from living in a public fish bowl.

The A.S. election will take place mid-semester next spring and the five executive positions, president, executive vice president, vice president of external affairs, vice president of finance and vice president of university affairs, will be up for grabs once again.

Vice President of Finance Grant Garske said that while the position is very rewarding, students who want to take up the job had better steel themselves against the onslaught of tasks and responsibilities.

“You see the other executive officers and at times you see them looking like a rag doll a bit,” Garske said. “They’re tired, they did not sleep the night before, it’s a very rigorous job. Although we do work a set number of hours, the fact of the matter is that we’re on call 24/7.”

A.S. is a student corporation, armed with a $20 million budget, elected by and responsible for the student body. Executives must learn business etiquette and take on the tasks of keeping records, managing student finances, implementing projects such as Modern Space and overseeing San Diego State facilities such as Aztec Center and the Aztec Recreation Center. They also manage the student organizations and programs such as Green Love and Rock the Vote.

Executives are paid a salary of roughly $18,000 a year according to Executive Director of A.S. Dan Cornthwaite. This wage is reassessed every year based upon the cost of living as an in-state but off-campus student. All executives are paid the same, Cornthwaite said.

In the last election, the winning candidates James Poet, Joy Salvatin, Daniel Osztreicher, Garske and Tim Velasquez ran together as a united front, an alliance based on shared ideas and issues, Garske said. Of the five, only Poet was a returning executive.

“We had the same feelings,” Garske said. “We came together and just sort of thought about what we would like to see if, hypothetically, we worked together. James ran again because he knew the system — no learning curve. Efficiency, through the roof. And with the other execs, he helped facilitate that learning growth.”

Poet was arrested in October for allegedly driving under the influence and possession of marijuana, a happening that has dominated student discourse concerning A.S.

Garske said that he found it frustrating students who have never taken an interest in A.S. have “jumped on the bandwagon” against Poet but refuse to be informed or involved in A.S. as a whole. Garske called Poet a progressive leader who worked well with the other executives and he said removing Poet would create a negative chain reaction that would damage A.S. efficiency.

“Am I advocating for what he did as OK? No. Am I advocating for him to be let off the hook? No,” Garske said. “Am I advocating for a little bit more efficiency in our communications about that issue so that in the interim period, before a decision is made, we can still maintain high effectiveness? Yes.”

A.S. accomplishments are varied. This year executives helped to renew the lease of the Mission Bay Aquatic Center, a job that required wrangling over details with City Hall. When the university wanted to create the Aztec Nights events, they turned to A.S. to plan the activities. The Good Neighbor Program has worked to put a positive face on the university through outreach in the community. The Rock the Vote and Green Love initiatives have strived to get students involved in politics and in making the campus more eco-friendly.

Elections usually happen close to Spring Break, Garske said. When the winners are selected, they will be sworn in during the last A.S. council meeting in May. The outgoing A.S. president will make a farewell address and the incoming A.S. president will be sworn in by President Stephen L. Weber. The newly sworn in president will then swear in the other executive officers.

No prior experience is needed to run for an executive office, although a robust knowledge of the inner workings of A.S. and a penchant for a long to-do list would certainly be helpful.

Thousands sign pub's petition

Karli Cadel / Staff Photographer

Joseph Kowalow has raised an estimated 1,500 signatures in his fight to save Louie’s Suds & Sun Pub, and he said he would not stop until he has raised more signatures than the number of students who voted in the last Associated Students election.

Louie’s Pub will have to move off campus when Aztec Center closes due to the Modern Space project. Kowalow, psychology senior and Pub employee, said that after enough petitions have been raised, he would attend an A.S. council meeting and “demand” their support in saving the pub.

If the council refuses him, Kowalow said he would resort to more drastic measures like protests and even an A.S. executive recall.

The 1,500 signatures raised is a conservative estimate based upon several petition papers that have yet to be returned to Kowalow. He very well may have a greater number than 1,500. The A.S. Web site records a voter turnout of 3,255 students in the spring election meaning that Kowalow has almost reached that halfway mark. Louie Holton, the owner of the pub, has not been involved in the petition process, Kowalow said.

Executive Director of A.S. Dan Cornthwaite said that the recall process has only been used once during his tenure, and while technically Kowalow could have A.S. officials ousted, the process was originally designed to address A.S. ethics violations.

“There’s a process in the A.S. bylaws that has to be followed to recall A.S. officers,” Cornthwaite said. “I’m not sure in this case what the charges would be, of wrongdoing or whatever, other than the fact that they may not agree with his position.”

Cornthwaite said the university will have a campus-wide space shortage during the renovation and that relocating Louie’s Pub is not possible. He said that the money earned from Louie’s Pub has been down for several years now and that Modern Space would be a fresh start to select the best business venture for the space.

“There will be a pub,” Corthaite said. “If the overwhelming voice of the students is that Louie should be the operator, I’m not sure that they are really in a position to have access to all the information that should be part of any criteria that assesses whether or not he is the right operator for that space. Again, I’m not suggesting that he’s not, but it’s just not a guaranteed thing.”

If nothing is done, Kowalow promises a large-scale protest complete with community involvement and attendant media coverage.

“Without saying what it is- I will make the administration’s head spin with what I can organize,” Kowalow said. “I have a loud voice. I will not be quieted. I will be heard. The student’s voice will be heard. The huge shame of this is that the student council should be doing what I am doing because…they know how big of an issue this is to the students.”

In September, Holton said he was warned not to get involved in any “student upheaval” by Director of Communications and Campus Relations for Aztec Shops R.D. Williams and that doing so would negatively effect securing a new lease.

However, a “student upheaval” may be exactly what SDSU will see in coming months, according to Kowalow.

A.S. BRIEF: 11-24-08

Election money debated
Not all students are equal, especially in Associated Student’s elections.
Some students run lavish campaigns because of their ample personal finances, while others must scrounge together enough money to print out fliers.

Last week, councilmembers discussed ways to make the upcoming A.S. election fair. The monetary debate was part of a larger election code overhaul.

Some councilmembers were concerned that A.S. elections would devolve into runaway spending, put college students into debt and set a “dangerous precedent” by allowing executive positions to be essentially up for sale to the highest bidder.

Councilmembers discussed various solutions. One proposal restricted the amount of overall campaign contributions a person could receive to $2,500 including only $100 from an individual person. Another suggested contribution cap of $10,000 and a proposal to set no cap at all, were both voted down.

Interfraternity Council Representative Tyler Boden suggested a $5,000 contribution cap which was finally approved by the council.

With an election looming next spring, students will have the opportunity to run for the various positions within A.S. Some executives shared their own experiences when they ran for offices. Vice President of External Affairs Daniel Osztreicher summed up his advice by saying, “It’s going to get expensive.”

Fraternities host charity event
Student E.J. Avena promoted a hip-hop musical event with the goal of raising money to purchase 10,000 shirts for children in the Philippines. Fraternity Alpha Psi Rho will be teaming up with PNOY Apparel to present “A Sammy Thing — Shirt the Kids Charity Showcase” on Dec. 9 in Montezuma Hall.

The “showcase” will feature performers such as Blue Scholars, Son of Ran, Bambu, Ashley Robles and Kiwi. Avena said that the event is aimed at spreading awareness of poverty in the Philippines and worldwide.