We at CSDR are well aware that a massive construction project will soon begin on campus. About two years ago, Governor Newsom inserted a budget item to replace the aging athletic facilities that have been in place since 1957. We owe our gratitude to the football team for the CIF championship. The football news traveled near and far including the Capitol in Sacramento. We hardly wait for the outstanding and modern playing fields.
The old facilities include the current football field with real grass, the track field with dirt, a concrete retaining wall with metal chains, concrete bleachers, and a baseball field. The construction project cost $25,000. Athletic Director Bill Thornton designed the old playing fields.
Those old facilities will be gone, along with the announcement sign posted along Arlington Ave. Athletic Director Jeremias Valencia, ‘99, confirms that the old sign will be replaced with a TV-like screen. For the past 30 years, someone has needed to put up or remove individual black letters on the old sign. The process is time- consuming. Sometimes, the announcement line stays on the board for months on end. To the contrary, someone will have access to the computer to make new announcements automatically on the new sign easily and more often.
We can’t forget who led the campaign to establish the announcement board in the first place. It was around 1992. Morton Bayarsky, a long-time dorm counselor, pushed the idea to reality with his volunteer time. He managed to raise $2,500 from individuals. I remember I donated $25 to the fund.
We see how important it is to communicate with passing cars every day on Arlington Ave. It is estimated that 30,000 vehicles use the avenue daily.
We are excited that a modern and electronic announcement board will be installed sometime in 2025 or 2026.
As a museum curator, I don't see how, due to its large size, we can save the old board for the museum. We will bid goodbye to the board for its 30-year service and to the late Morton Bayarsky for his leadership.
Kevin Struxness, ‘76, MA
Editor, CSDR Old Times
10 October 2024
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