The Government of the Student Body senate will consider tonight — for the fourth time — a proposal to create a student-focused theater for Iowa State University.

As leaders among our student populace, it’s their role to make decisions regarding complex issues facing the student body, and the decision set before senators in the coming hours, days or weeks is a weighty one:

They’re considering to commit up to $300,000 to the one-time start-up costs associated with renovating the space, and another $65,000 to cover projected first-year operating losses of more than $50,000.

They plan to commit $75,000 of FY2011 funds to continue to operate the facility, projected to run at an operating loss of just under $60,000.

And if the theatre is unsuccessful, and building staff and supervisors decide to close up shop, they’ll still be committed to the rest of the 5-year lease, at $24,000 per year.

It’s a decision that deserves more attention and consideration than it’s received from the student body, and, on this point, we speak to ourselves, as well.

As editor of the paper, I apologize for undervaluing the significance of the decision at hand.

Not once in the past four months have we honored this monumental and momentous drive on the part of our student leaders by placing Varsity Theater stories prominently on Page 1.

Not once have we used our skills, as journalists, and the resources and tools at our disposal, as publishers of your student newspaper, to present to you in a full, clear and succinct manner the crux of the agreement our student body government representatives are entering into on our behalf.

A decision may well come about at tonight’s meeting, and we don’t want you to wake up tomorrow morning, wondering where nearly half of a million dollars in accrued student fees have gone.

It’ll have been committed to the future of Varsity Theatre, but will you have known about it? We aren’t sure, which is why we’d like to see the senate postpone its vote by a week.

Now, obviously, if there’s good reason to pass the measure tonight — because they’re hoping to have it signed by President Jon Turk and presented to the Board of Regents on Thursday morning, for example — then we’ll understand.

But if not, we’re asking senators to give us another chance at making sure their constituents — you, as members of the student body — are as informed as possible before they take the next step. To be clear, we stand behind our previously stated support for the plan:

The project would draw students into Campustown, bringing minor-friendly activities to the neighborhood.

The space would give organizations that program events, like the Student Union Board and IRHA, room to grow.

Most importantly, the project would give us good reason to feel pride for and ownership of Campustown.

We just hope the decision will be made in as full of awareness and understanding of the student body as possible.