[P class=rdheadline]WSU students approve $25 stadium fee
[P class=rdbyline]By [A href="mailto:
[email protected]"]CHRISTINE FREY[/A]
P-I REPORTER
Washington State University students have agreed to pay $25 a semester to cover renovation of the campus football stadium.
They voted 65 percent in favor of the new fee during a vote this week. The election drew 6,090 students on the Pullman campus out of more than 17,300.
The athletic department is asking students to contribute $10 million over the next 25 years to help pay for renovations to the student section of Martin Stadium.
The stadium renovation, which will include better concessions, bathrooms and stadium access, is expected to cost as much as $79 million. WSU will help pay for the construction through private donations and a $5 fee added to football tickets.
Students -- who already shell out more than $900 a year in mandatory fees -- will begin paying the football stadium fee this fall.
"We are very pleased with the outcome of the election and I would like to thank all of the students who voted, regardless if it was for or against the referendum," athletic director Jim Sterk said in a statement. "It was very important to WSU athletics that all students had the opportunity to give their voice on this matter."
This is the third time in the past decade that WSU students have agreed to pay more for new or improved amenities on campus. They have also voted to fund the construction of a new recreation center and student union.
University officials have defended the practice of using student fees, saying that the state will not typically fund non-academic buildings. In recent years, students at the University of Washington and Central, Eastern and Western Washington universities have agreed to pay for the construction or renovation of campus facilities.
The WSU Board of Regents must approve the football-stadium fee.
