University History 1997 Flood

Damaged Student Center Renovated

Published July 2007

Another immediate challenge concerned the heavily damaged Student Center. The bookstore had been destroyed and with it all of the textbooks for the fall semester. Additionally, offices housing more than twenty CSU student clubs and organizations, including the Rocky Mountain Collegian and KCSU, had been washed away.

Water outside of LSC

A bike appears as the water starts to recede west of Lory Student Center.

How could membership records, programs and essential historical information be retrieved in time to restore the extracurricular activities that enriched so much of student life? How could food services be restored in a facility where a sizeable percentage of university ate lunch, grabbed snacks or attended banquets. These were problems confronting Lory Student Center Director Martha Blood and her staff.

Bookstore was a total loss

The bookstore was a total loss. Not only had the entire $5 million stock of books been washed away, but related records as well. Fortunately, the privately owned Rams Bookstore on Laurel Street had survived the flood, and its owner, Harry Kull, generously shared his identical lists of department orders and publishers with CSU.

Immediately, Martha Blood and bookstore manager John Parry began evaluating usable space within the Student Center that might serve as a temporary store. They contacted publishing company representatives to expedite rush orders, sought help from other college bookstores and established emergency hotlines to speed the reordering process.

Staff and volunteers ensure textbooks get to students

By the first day of classes on August 25, a temporary 3,500 square foot facility had been set up on the second floor, featuring plywood counters and lighting provided by generators. By this time approximately 85 percent of the textbooks had arrived and been organized for distribution. Regular bookstore staff and scores of volunteers greeted students who presented fall class schedules. A complicated retrieval process then ensued as books for various courses were collected from storage shelves behind the counters or from trailers parked outside the building.

Although long lines wound from the Student Center to the plaza on the east side, the wait averaged only 45 minutes. Music and entertainment were provided to placate anticipated grumbling, but few students complained. "Sure it’s frustrating to stand in line," said student Ryan Mackie, "but I think CSU is doing a great job. A natural disaster came through here and things will take time to get back on track."

Student organizations responded with determination and ingenuity

Student organizations responded with similar determination and ingenuity. Offices housing the newspaper, yearbook, and radio and television stations had been totally destroyed along with all of the equipment needed to make those activities function.

It was difficult to accept how much was lost. But we began to believe it when we saw files washed two blocks away, floating on the Oval.

-Amy Gades, journalism instructor and coach for student media

"It was difficult to accept how much was lost," recalled Amy Gades, journalism instructor and coach for student media. "But we began to believe it when we saw files washed two blocks away, floating on the Oval."

Once the initial shock had passed Larry Steward, manager of student media, suggested that the next step should be to put out a newspaper. "Isn’t that what newspapers do in major disasters?" he said. Accordingly, the newspaper, yearbook and radio station moved to annexes behind the Old Fort Collins High School on Remington Street.

Barely a month after the flood Gades could comment:

"It isn’t pretty or anything, but it’s functional. We rented computers, but we also received donations from UNC . . . [the] Colorado Springs Gazette, Loveland Reporter-Herald and the Colorado Press Association. Care packages full of hard candy, pens and other things came in from the University of Illinois. The . . . Coloradoan gave us desks and other furniture, and the people at ACNS (Academic Computing and Networking Services) were a tremendous help, along with journalism faculty on campus."

By August 22, the newspaper had resumed publication, providing essential information to the campus community about the flood recovery process.

LSC Theater undergoes major renovation

The Lory Student Center exemplified the recovery process. Within six months of the flood the theater, originally built in 1962 and an important venue for university cultural events, had undergone major renovation. Crews completely rebuilt the stage, submerged beneath 14 feet of water on July 28. All of the original 440 cast iron seats were dismantled, reupholstered and repainted to a new condition. Other features included a new stage curtain, piano and carpeting. Additionally, a 1927 Wulitzer pipe organ underwent a complete restoration.

Workers haul debris outside of the CSU Bookstore

Workers dispose of debris from the CSU Bookstore located in the Lory Student Center.

Renovated bookstore

Equally impressive was the renovated bookstore. A reconfigured design of the same floor space increased shelving efficiency to accommodate textbook needs of 25,000 students, more than doubling the previous limit. A second entrance to speed transactions, wheel chair access ramps and other features promoting both flexibility and aesthetic attractiveness also characterized the renovation. Richard Kremer, a university bookstore design consultant, expressed a highly complementary assessment:

"These kinds of projects take years to complete at other universities. Colorado State should be extremely proud of its achievement because it is nothing short of amazing. This could be used as a national model for other universities undergoing similar projects."

More about the flood

Historical accounts in this series of articles, were compiled and edited from Democracy's University - A History of Colorado State University 1970-2003, written by James E. Hansen II (University Press of Colorado, 2007).

To order a book, call (970) 491-6198, e-mail Resource.Center@ucm.colostate.edu or visit 115 General Services Building on Colorado State’s main campus. Cost is $27, not including tax or shipping. The books are also available at the CSU Bookstore in the Lory Student Center.

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