It may be the campus crown jewel, but the new Marshall Student Center at the University of South Florida is a drain on utilities.
Electric, air conditioning and water bills have collectively quadrupled from this time last year, according to university records.
If energy costs continue to increase, administrators may seek a larger share of student fees to pay for them, which means other student activities could lose out.
The 233,000-square-foot student union opened in late August and is double the size of the old Marshall Center.
Its popularity with students has exceeded expectations, said Jennifer Meningall, the university's vice president of student affairs.
It takes a lot to electrify and cool all that square footage. USF paid $103,506 for electric, air conditioning, water and sewage needs in September, the first full month the student center was open. That was a 388 percent increase from the $21,211 the university paid at the old Marshall Center in September 2007.
The university supports the Marshall Student Center with the activity fees students pay annually. Administrators last month asked trustees to increase those fees by 52 cents a credit hour, which tacks $7 on an average student's tuition bill each semester.
That money only generates a half-million dollars, and it won't be collected for months.
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