The Fresno Bee, Bryant-Jon Anteola
Fresno State Takes Out $600K Loan To Finish Turf Install
June 22, 2011 /
The Fresno State athletic department will take out a loan to cover the final $600,000 of its $1.2 million project to install artificial turf at Bulldog Stadium, but still is counting on fundraising pledges to cover the entire cost.
Athletic director Thomas Boeh said even if the donations are not received, there is money to repay the loan already in reserve.
Under terms of the loan from a bank in Kansas, Fresno State will pay $132,000 per year for five years with a 5.13 annual percentage rate. The department can pay off the loan sooner, but incurs a $9,000 fee if done within the first year.
“We’re not running any risks,” Boeh said. “We’re still not going to use any state funding to complete the project. What we’re doing is floating the loan based on the donors’ pledges. There aren’t many projects where all the cash is in place.
“We’re still counting on our donors and pledges to come through, and that way, we can pay that loan off.”
The FieldTurf project is expected to be completed by Aug. 24, more than three weeks before the football team plays its home opener Sept. 17 against North Dakota.
Also Tuesday, the department approved a 2011-12 budget to submit to university President John Welty.
The spending plan extends the department’s tight-rope walk to remain on budget, projecting $24,369,277 in revenues and $24,360,217 in expenses.
A year ago, Fresno State projected revenues of $24,203,309 and expenses of $24,191,450. Actual totals are not yet available.
Fresno State will not receive any money from the Western Athletic Conference for the upcoming school year as part of its penalty for switching to the Mountain West next summer.
But Fresno State was able to develop a budget similar to the previous year with the help of $137,000 from the WAC – the university’s share of exit fees that Boise State paid this past school year to leave for the Mountain West.
The WAC considered using the money taken from Boise State in ways besides dividing it among the other WAC programs. But Fresno State argued strongly against such options during conference meetings, eventually convincing school presidents to keep the original distribution plans, Boeh said.
Boeh said the budget’s expenses reflect the rising costs of scholarships. Projected revenues include about $2.5 million to come from student fees that are rising from $32.50 to $60 per student per semester.
Steve Weakland, Fresno State’s sports information director the past 12 years, is leaving to be director of corporate communications for the San Francisco 49ers.
