Jack hammers and diesel fumes that interrupted classes at the Art Sculpture Lab last week united students and faculty in an effort to halt construction of a bus depot behind the Public Safety building.

Following a unanimous vote by the Sacramento State Faculty Senate and a strong push by art students, Associate Vice President of Facilities Services Ron Richardson scuttled the bus depot project and canceled all construction at the site until after the end of the semester. Two modular units for ROTC and Public Safety have already been installed and will not be relocated. The bus depot will be moved to a different place on campus, a location Richardson said has not yet been determined.

Some damage had already been done, resulting in what Assistant Professor of Art Sarah Flohr said was a general lack of understanding and caring about the needs of the Art Department.

A communication breakdown led to some of the conflict, Richardson said. Facilities Services workers and outside contractors began installing modular units and trenching through the parking lot between Public Safety and the lab, without the Art Department ever having been notified. Richardson said he is working with the Provost’s Office to create a better line of communication to the departments throughout campus.

Seven parking spaces were lost to the modular units and to the storage containers to be used by Public Safety and ROTC. These parking spaces are essential to the sculpture lab because they enable students to transport large pieces of art to and from the lab, drop-off projects and have safe access to their cars, said Laurie Lemmon, senior studio art major. Many of the art students are on campus late at night and on the weekends, she said.

The removal of parking spaces was only part of the issue. Jeff Mason, dean of the College of Arts and Letters, said the installation of the modular units creates a negative visual and practical impact for the students who use the lab.

“This is part of our workspace,” Mason said. “Without this area, we fear students might decide that they can’t work on the big stuff. Students should not have to make that decision because of modular buildings restricting the ability to load and transport their pieces.”

Dan Frye, chair of the Art Department, said the students who attended the Faculty Senate meeting were present to show the spirit they have for art.

“I see the modular units killing that spirit. It’s not just the parking spaces we are talking about,” Frye said.

Andrew Connelly, assistant professor of sculpture, said over the last several years, the university has slowly encroached on the sculpture lab.

“We used to have access to the river,” Connelly said. “Then, they put the road through. Then, a part of our outside area was given to the U.S. Geological Society to store boats and trailers.”

Last year, expansion of the nursing program on campus necessitated the removal of six parking spaces and placed the first modular unit by the lab.

Had the construction of the bus depot continued, another 18 student and faculty parking spaces would have been removed. The Art Department requested that the modular units be moved to another location but Richardson said that the units would not be moved. Currently, seven parking spaces in front of the Art Sculpture Lab are blocked by a fence surrounding the construction site.

Nancy Fox, director of University Transportation & Parking Services, said the parking spaces would be restored once the fence is removed. The fence is expected to be removed this weekend, Fox said.

In addition to relocating the bus depot, Richardson said the restrooms in the Art Sculpture Lab would be remodeled over the summer. The lab is used to instruct about 200 students per day and contains one toilet for men and one for women. Richardson said the restrooms do not meet current state codes. They were part of the complaint filed with Sac State President Alexander Gonzalez by the Art Department.

The complaint that was filed included other facility upgrades the Art Department is requesting, such as new kiln rooms for baking clay sculptures and pottery, and studios designed for graduate students. Currently, lower, upper and graduate students share workspace and equipment. Some of these projects were approved and placed on the priority list for construction in 2006. The projects have not yet begun, further frustrating the Art Department.

Richardson said at least one project will be completed using minor capital outlay funds for the Art Department during the 2008-09 school year. These funds are used for maintenance projects throughout the different departments on campus. Minor capital outlay projects cannot exceed $400,000. Currently, the campus has a total of $124 million in maintenance projects that require funding.

Flohr said she appreciates the concessions but the larger issues have still been missed.

“The lack of communication with the Art Department and the previous raids on our space still haven’t been addressed,” Flohr said.

Last Friday, members of the Art Department, Facilities Services, UTAPS and Academic Affairs met to discuss the resolution passed by the Faculty Senate. The resolution outlined a series of complaints and infringements that have occurred over the last several years and requests for compensation. Though most of the requests the Art Department made were accepted, some of the Art Department students and faculty were not satisfied.

Ian Harvey, professor of painting, said he is not encouraged by the discussion.

“We heard a lot of nice words,” Harvey said. “We have been polite and I think that is why this keeps happening.”

Liv Moe, masters of studio art student, said the university doesn’t value the Art Sculpture Lab being on campus.

“At the Faculty Senate meeting, one senator said they didn’t even know what the building was for,” Moe said. “It’s an attitude of general neglect.”

Derek Fleming can be reached at [email protected].