UCLA Chancellor Albert Carnesale reiterated last Friday that
renovating Pauley Pavilion is one of the school’s top
priorities, but he cautioned that serious discussions concerning
the project will not begin in earnest until the end of the school
year. “We all recognize that we have to do something about
Pauley for a host of reasons,” Carnesale said. “Pauley
is too central to this campus and such a part of its history that
it would not make sense not to renovate it.” The goal of any
plan to alter the 40-year-old arena is to improve it, not to
replace it, said Carnesale, echoing what UCLA athletic director Dan
Guerrero said about the project in October. Fund-raising efforts
have not begun yet, Carnesale said, nor is UCLA close to hiring an
architect. Chief among UCLA’s priorities for the project is
improving the spectator amenities at Pauley Pavilion and bringing
the seats behind each basket closer to the court. A few other
upgrades that have been discussed would involve updating both the
home and visiting locker rooms and installing conference rooms in
the building. UCLA heard a preliminary proposal from a local
architectural firm in October, but neither Guerrero nor Carnesale
have been willing to reveal an estimated cost for the proposed
renovations. Similar upgrades to comparable venues have cost
between $40 million and $60 million.
BASEBALL: Jackie Robinson, the only Bruin to letter in four
sports, was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal on
Wednesday. The honor, which was commissioned by Congress after the
American Revolution, is the highest expression of recognition given
to individuals based on their distinguished achievements and
contributions. After participating in football, basketball, track
and baseball at UCLA from 1939-1941, Robinson became the first
player to break Major League Baseball’s color barrier in
1947. The award was presented to members of Robinson’s family
by President Bush. “Jackie’s is an amazing
story,” said Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig.
“This kind of recognition outside of baseball is long
overdue.”
Compiled by Jeff Eisenberg and Bruin wire services.