By Peter Castillo

Editor-In-Chief 

  CSU Bakersfield can decide the fate of the Student Union and new aquatics center this week by voting on the new student referendum.

  The vote for the expansion of the Student Union and the addition of a new aquatics center will take place tomorrow and continue Thursday, Feb. 22.

  Voting will take place on RunnerSync. Students can access it through CSUB’s website by going to Access CSUB.

  Associated Students Inc. has promoted the campaign with various informational sessions recently.

  “We wanted to give students as much information as possible they could make an informed decision,” said ASI President Mariela Gomez.

  If the vote were to pass, student fees will rise dramatically.

  As it stands, students pay $468 annually toward a student body fee which applies to both the Student Union and the Student Recreation Center.

  The fee for the Student Union is $94 annually while the SRC fee is $374.50.

  Should the vote pass, the numbers would cause the total of the student body fee to jump to $628 annually.

  The total cost of the two projects will be roughly $37 million, with $27 million going toward the expansion of the Student Union and $10 going toward the new aquatics center.

  The vote will pass if more than 50 percent of students vote in favor of the referendum.

  CSUB’s Antelope Valley campus will also reap some of the benefits if the vote passes. An increase to the programming budget, upgrades to classroom furniture and technologies and transportation for seven CSUB home athletic events.

  An additional 80 to 100 jobs could be created on campus, according to Gomez.