Money to build, repair and maintain Sacramento State?s grounds and structures is so tight that at current budget levels it would take nearly 40 years to get all the work done, according to university maintenance officials.

The leaky roofs on the Sacramento State campus such as the “Big Dripper” above the stairs in the University Union are just one item on a list of hundreds of projects for Sac State?s Facilities Management Department.

The Facilities Management Department has a list of projects to be completed, but there are more projects than there is money for, said Associate Vice President of Facilities Management Matthew Alter.

Facilities Management has a deferred maintenance list where projects are prioritized. These items include leaky roof patchwork, paint jobs, grounds keeping, mechanical work and other projects.What?s currently on the deferred list adds up to about $40 million, Alter said, and only $1.2 million is budgeted this year.

Facilities Management does as much work as it can with about 80 custodians and maintenance workers, but for big projects such as building a new structure or replacing a leaky roof, the work is contracted out, Alter said.

This summer, contractors will replace the roofs of Santa Clara and Humboldt Halls.

Depending on the building, replacing a roof can cost from $400,000 to $1 million, Alter said.

Budgeting for Facilities Management comes from the state and is not obtained through student fees. Alter said when he proposes a budget, he makes his presentation to Sac State President Donald Gerth?s staff and sometimes to the California State University Board of Trustees.

Future construction plans for the campus include a third parking structure and putting another floor on the science building. Since there is limited space on campus, Alter said the only place to go is up.

Alter said he would also like to replace the 50-year-old campus sewer system.

Ideally, Alter said he would like to have the funding to complete all the maintenance needs on campus, but “we tackle as much as we can with the budget we have.”

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