State OKs $42 million for recreation center

[Editor’s note: This article has been modified to more clearly characterize statements made by Campus Recreation Communications Director Tony Rasmussen.]

The legislature gave Portland State University official permission to build a student recreation center last Thursday. Other items in the capital construction bill’s approved list of projects include $13 million for Shattuck Hall renovations, permission to purchase the City Tower on Southwest Fourth Avenue and revamp hotel and conference center University Place.

The $42 million allotted for the rec center is more than the project requires because it includes funding for residential space which is not part of PSU’s plan, said Tony Rasmussen, communications director for Campus Recreation. The legislature’s plan means students would not pay construction fees for the building until it opens.

Campus Rec Director Alex Accetta plans to meet with Finance and Administration VP Cathy Dyck this week to figure out the next step. The project is pending approval from the State Board of Higher Education, Rasmussen said.

“The legislature said it’s okay for us to have the loan. The Oregon University System is going to have to say, ‘OK, let’s do it.'”

The City Tower, located directly north of the Maseeh College of Engineering and Computer Science, is currently owned by city of Portland. It houses city government bureaus as well as university classrooms.

Lincoln Hall did not make the list of approved projects.