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February 8, 2008 > News > Construction delay force KTRU o move Outdoor Show

Construction delay force KTRU o move Outdoor Show

By Dale Swartz | Thresher staff

A delay in construction on the Brochstein Pavilion and landscape work in the central quadrangle behind it has left KTRU searching for an alternate venue for its annual Outdoor Show on April 13.

Originally scheduled for completion in mid-March, construction on the pavilion will be completed by April, but not in time for the concert.

“All along we’ve had the Grand Hall at the RMC as a backup in case of rain, but we didn’t have a backup outdoor site in case the construction wasn’t done,” Outdoor Show Organizer Rachel Orosco said.

Facilities, Engineering and Planning is working with KTRU to find an alternate venue and will pay for at least some of the costs. A tentative agreement to relocate the show has been reached to hold it on one of the intramural fields to the north of Jesse E. Jones Graduate School of Management.

“Everyone has been really flexible and agreeable,” Orosco, a Jones College sophomore, said.

Last September, KTRU Station Manager Nick Schlossman went to Vice President for Administration Kevin Kirby, who signed off on the event and said KTRU could use the open space adjacent to the new pavilion. He was assured construction would be complete by then. But then the weather got in the way.

Project Manager Larry Vossler said Houston saw the wettest July and August since 1942 last year with forty-eight inches of rain — twenty inches more than normal.

In an effort to catch up on the days of lost time, construction crews worked weekends, including Sundays. Once December arrived, contractors began to doubt the feasibility of finishing by April.

Part of the difficulty with completing the project in time was in the nature of the project, which is essentially split into two components: First is the pavilion itself, the glass-encased structure behind Fondren Library that will house a new coffeehouse and have a large outdoor plaza.

The second portion is a major renovation and landscaping of the grassy central quadrangle between Herring Hall and the Rice Memorial Center, where the Outdoor Show was scheduled to take place. When it is completed, it will contain new grass, new sidewalks, an elm grove, fountains and seating.

In an effort to control the flooding issues that occur in that section of campus, a new irrigation and drainage system is also being constructed.

Consultants concluded that the grass and landscape features would be too new and fresh to sustain an event of that size. KTRU was informed about the situation two weeks ago.

“[By mid-April] you or I could walk across that grass, but if we brought 1,000 of our best friends, we would just overwhelm it,” Vossler said.

The 17th Annual KTRU Outdoor Show, envisioned as an opportunity for Rice students and community members to enjoy live music of all sorts, will be held April 13 from noon to 9 pm. It will start early with a family-oriented children’s act, followed by jazz, blues, a cultural act and hip-hop. The Rice Battle of the Bands winner is featured as well, and the night ends with a nationally-famous headliner.

“And we think there’s going to be free beer — that’s always a plus,” Orosco said.

End of article

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