Ground was broken Wednesday south of C.Y. Stephens Auditorium, the future site of the commuter bus shelter, which is scheduled to open in the spring of 2002.

Ames Mayor Ted Tedesco, Government of the Student Body President Andy Tofilon and Speaker of the Senate Andrew Kothenbeutel along with ISU administrators were on hand to turn the golden shovels with the ISU mascot Cy.

The $400,000 project has had a few roadblocks since the original idea was proposed in 1997 with an original budget of $250,000.

Two years ago, GSB stepped forward, promising to finance half the cost if ISU administration would pick up the rest, said Douglas Houghton, Department of Public Safety parking division manager.

The administration agreed, he said.

“It’s a good project. Not only is it a good project because of the students and administration working together, but it will improve the experience for commuters,” Houghton said. “It will be a place where commuters can connect with the campus, meet people and relax.”

GSB normally doesn’t get involved with capital improvements on campus, Tofilon said.

“The project itself will be a wonderful improvement to campus,” he said. “This is something we really need to do, and for commuter students, this is a necessity.”

The project is still running over budget, and more money will have to be financed from GSB, Tofilon said. If GSB hadn’t offered additional support, the project would have been killed, he said.

In 1997, a list of goals were put together by staff and students on ways to improve the commuter experience, Houghton said. For the past four years, the group has been looking at ways to make the project a reality, he said.

When staff meet with architects the project price jumped and when the project was bidded out, it jumped again, Houghton said.

“The budget got adjusted very early on when the bids came in over budget,” he said. “But because the building seemed to fulfill the original goals, they kept with the original design instead of scaling back.”

For instance, the restrooms – the most expensive part of the project – were not cut from the project and were not a negotiation point, Tofilon said.

“If there wasn’t a restroom, GSB would not finance it,” Tofilon said. “Cost went up because it is difficult to put a restroom at the site.”

The shelter will have an indoor heated room for about 40 people and a covered outdoor area that has a windbreak, Houghton said.

“It is an interesting building,” he said. “It is designed to provide radiant and solar heating.”

Refreshments will be available for commuters and bulletin boards will be put up so student groups can post announcements, Houghton said. An emergency phone and improved lighting will also be included in the project, he said.

The building is designed to fit in with the Jacobson Athletic Building and C.Y. Stephens Auditorium, and it will be protected from potential flooding, Houghton said.

The architecture firm of Conway and Schulte of Minneapolis designed the building, and Jensen Builders LTD of Boone have been hired as the contractors, Houghton said.

“One of the nice things about this project was the planning group involved with this,” he said.

“Staff and students stuck to the goals they originally laid out instead of slicing big chunks out of it to make it cheaper. They gathered enough funds to serve commuters.”