Am I the only one upset about the proposal, apparently spearheaded by the student-funded University Union, to raise our student fees once again to construct the Wellness-Recreation-Events Center (WREC)?

If all goes according to the university’s public statements thus far, the bill will be $100 to $150 per semester for each student, in addition to the approximately $100 per student Associated Students, Inc. already contributes to athletics each year. There have already been attempts to persuade the students to vote themselves into this new obligation over the past few years. The students have refused to support it, and for good reason: It is a poor investment. First show us how the $100 we are already spending is a good investment, then come to us and ask us to give you more money to play with.

Other state universities, such as Fresno State, have been able to construct this type of facility without sticking the students with the cost. Fresno’s Save Mart Center was completed last November, and was 100 percent privately financed. I’m sure the first objection to this example will be that the Fresno State athletics program is more successful than ours, and that that enabled them to get more private money. But that would prove my point: Our athletics program is already taking around $100 from each student each year, ostensibly to help them be more competitive. Has it worked? No.

Despite the “hype” being put forth by WREC proponents, and augmented by the efforts of a pair of consultants being paid with $50,000 of the student-funded University Union’s money, there is no groundswell of support for an increase of student fees to fund a multipurpose center. The directors of the University Union invited campus organizations and individual students to take part in focus groups.

But who actually made it into those focus groups? How did the University Union derive the absurd 78 percent support rate they claim on their project’s website? I challenge them to find one qualified faculty member who would be willing to stake their academic and professional reputation on that figure accurately representing the view of the overall campus community.

Even if the general campus population stood to benefit from the WREC proposal, those benefits can be gained without forcing every student to pay for services that some have no desire to use. For example, large student discounts could be negotiated with local fitness centers, and fundraisers can be held to fund the replacement of old exercise equipment. I wonder how much equipment that $50,000 consulting fee could have replaced or repaired?

While they may be loud and well-funded, the WREC proponents are a small minority of the student population, and cannot be truthfully said to be representative of the rest of us. Take the time to let the University Union and ASI know that you do not favor a fee increase to build this facility. The only way to have your voice heard is to speak up.

Brandon Abell, a senior government major at Sac State, is the founder of Students Tired of Paying Increased Tuition (STOPIT). He can be reached at [email protected]