UNLV's love affair with the big, ugly and expensive
Do you remember the $780-a-square-foot Greenspun Hall? It isn't the only big, ugly (in my opinion) and expensive building on UNLV's campus. Now UNLV needs to fix its student wellness center because it is not up to code to withstand earthquakes. The building will need millions of dollars in repairs on top of the more than $45 million the university already spent in the center's initial construction.
According to the Review-Journal, "The four-story facility houses a running track, two swimming pools, courts for basketball and racquetball, work-out machines, health service, spa, cafe and meeting rooms. Students, not Nevada taxpayers, footed the bill to construct the rec building, through an academic-credit fee."
UNLV shouldn't be running a health and wellness business. It should be educating students. All students at UNLV are forced to pay these fees whether or not they use the facilities, and this is unfair to most students. People should not be forced to pay extra for amenities in education they do not want and do not use.
UNLV and other colleges should sell these facilities - including all the equipment - or rent out the space to private service providers. Las Vegas is NOT short on private gyms, which students can join if they wish.
