Falk Center plans delayed
Fundraising efforts for a new building that will house the David B. Falk Center for Sport Management have stalled before construction has begun. Syracuse University has not indicated when it will break ground, said Michael Veley, director and chair of SU’s Department of Sport Management.
With the weak economy, the university issued a different set of fundraising priorities emphasizing student aid rather than the new center.
The center is still in the conceptual stages and no architectural plans have been made. Veley said 100 percent of the money must be raised before any construction begins.
‘This is something that is still being considered. It’s a project that is going to take some time to happen,’ said Kevin Morrow, SU spokesman. ‘The economy is not good right now and everyone knows that it is a very difficult time.’ Morrow declined to provide current fundraising figures.
The university didn’t specify a timeline for the construction of the center when Falk donated the funds, Morrow said. Morrow admitted that the project will take a while, but is positive that it will happen eventually.
Veley said he doesn’t believe the delay will hurt the program, and supports the shift in fundraising toward student aid.
‘We’ve been able to make it. It hasn’t hurt the branding of our program,’ he said. ‘You get dealt a deck of cards, and you deal with it. And I think our students are dealing with that.’
David Falk donated $5 million for the center in April 2008. The sport management program decided to use the donation to strengthen curriculum development and recruiting new professors. SU did not use the donation towards the construction of a building to house the center, which was supposed to be built adjacent to the Carrier Dome, Morrow said.
‘As the center further develops, we envision using the Carrier Dome as a learning laboratory for our majors and will integrate current and future experiential learning opportunities so that our students have unmatched experiences both inside and outside of the classroom,’ Veley told The Daily Orange in 2008.
Despite initial plans for the location of the center, Veley said he cannot guarantee the center will be near the Dome when work eventually begins.
The sport management program currently uses classrooms in several buildings for its courses and academic offices, including Veley’s, at Drumlins Country Club on Nottingham Road.
Falk, the man who donated the $5 million, is an SU alumnus and agent of basketball Hall of Famer Michael Jordan. He made the initial announcement about the center himself at Madison Square Garden in April 2008.
Published on September 16, 2009 at 12:00 pm
