Recent storms that pounded Southern California in December and January have also temporarily halted the first phase of construction of the Student Center expansion.

The construction, which is part of a growth plan for both Student Center and Price Center, was already approximately eight days behind by the end of December.

“No one was expecting this amount of rain,” Project Manager and architect Pnina Goldberg stated in an e-mail. “As much as we need the rain, it is not good for construction. We are hoping that we will be able to gain some momentum and make up some of the lost days, but at this moment we don’t know.”

San Diego has seen as much as four more inches of rain than what has been recorded in the past few years, according to National Weather Service of San Diego forecaster Stan Wasowski.

The delays are not expected to drastically alter the schedule for the Student Center expansion as a whole, which is scheduled for completion in April 2006.

University Centers Advisory Board has not expressed great concern about a significant delay, according to UCAB Chair Jessica Kort.

“I don’t believe that at this point we’re in any position to tell if rain will significantly delay the project,” Kort said, “We would have to adjust or re-adjust moving in, if, in the future, we can’t catch up. But it hasn’t been brought up as a specific concern.”

The regular rainy season from January to March will likely bring more heavy rains, Wasowski stated.

“We’re expecting a continuation of the pattern just like in the beginning of the month: heavy rains first and a dry spell for a week or so, but with more rain later,” Wasowski said.

Even with clearer skies in the past week, Goldberg said that wet soil in the construction area will limit the progress of the work. During this time, Straub Construction, the contractor for the project and the university, has been inspecting the ground for its safety.

“There is a limited amount of work we can do with heavy equipment when the ground is muddy and soaking wet, as it is when we have partial foundation,” Goldberg stated. “The main activity you will see on the site now is pumping out the water, stabilizing any trenches cut or filled before the storm and preventing any mudslide.”

The storms hit while the project was in a critical stage of establishing the foundation for the facility. Other stages to follow include working outside the foundation and construction of the interior, which will house the new Women’s Center and Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Resource Office, as well as meeting rooms, a student lounge and a new restaurant.

“If the rain would have come as predicted — end of January — we would have been out of the foundation, this would have been much easier to incorporate into a working schedule,” Goldberg stated.

According to Goldberg, the university and Straub Construction are continuing to work together to complete the project as planned.

“[Straub Construction] will try their best to finish on schedule, or even cut days from the schedule,” he said. “If they need the additional time, both parties lose. … Both parties want to finish on time.”

In spring 2003, students passed a referendum agreeing to pay fees to cover the reconstruction and expansion of both Price Center and Student Center. The part of the expansion that is covered by the student fees includes the creation of a student lounge, meeting rooms and a new restaurant.

According to University Centers director Gary Ratcliff, delays for the project will not impact the student fees. The main concern would be the organizations that are planning to relocate to the new facility, he said.

“We want to get these offices moved into the facility as soon as possible,” he said.

The LGBTRO, temporarily housed in a trailer across from Gilman Parking Structure, is in the process of preparing to move to its permanent offices, scheduled to open in August 2005.

“We know very well that you can’t control rains,” said Debbi Blake, assistant to the LGBTRO director. “There has been no real conversation of delays. We’re just going with the flow and hopefully will be able to move into new space when we can.”

Director of the Women’s Center Emelyn Delapeña said she is also hoping that the center will be able to move into the facility in the fall.

“We’ve already downsized, gotten rid of a lot of stuff,” Delapeña said. “As we get closer to the actual move-in, we will have meetings with our constituents to see what they want the facility to look and feel like.”