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The pyramid at California State University Long Beach (CSULB)
reaches 192 feet into the sky and measures 345 feet on each of four sides
at its perfectly square base, CSULB's facility
is one of only three pyramid structures in the United States and the only
one located on a campus. The other two are the Luxor located in Las
Vegas, and the Arena in Memphis, Tennessee. Designed by architect Don Gibbs
(a CSULB graduate), it was built by the Nielsen Construction Company of
San Diego.
Twenty years in the planning, it opened its doors in 1994
with an estimated price tag of $22 million. 50 percent of funding for the
Pyramid came from the State of California to provide class room space.
It includes a one-of-a-kind seating system, mounted on moveable platforms.
When use of the entire competition level is required for physical education
classes, the seating sections can be raised hydraulically to expose nearly
39,000 square feet of beechwood flooring. The Pyramid's exterior utilizes
a system of some 18,000 steal tubes and connection modules joined by more
than 160,000 three-quarter-inch bolts. If the tubes were laid end-to-end,
they would form a pipe span of approximately 26 miles.
Classes, campus sporting events, a commercial gym, meeting
rooms for community and corporate rental and location filming for movies
and commercials are some of the activities and uses the Pyramid's been
put to. Poor acoustics have nixed plans for concert events in the past
but the concept continues to be of interest. Student activities receive
priority over community events in a facility seating around 5,000
people with plans to expand to around 7,500.
The Pyramid has room for five volleyball courts,
three full basketball courts and four half basketball courts. The building
features a state-of-the-art educational conference center, The Pointe, which
provides a venue for academic lectures, workshops, seminars and banquets.
Another unique feature is The Pyramid's ultra-modern fitness center, Frog's
at the Pyramid, which is open to the university community and the public
when not in use for physical education classes.
The Pointe in the Pyramid provides a first-class venue
for conferences, weddings and bar mitzvahs, lectures and retreats
and sports banquets. A beautiful gallery gallery has a long, curved wall
which provides an interesting architectural effect through use of spotlights.
The Pacific Sunset multipurpose meeting room seats 320
for a lecture and 200 for a banquet. It can be divided into two nearly
equal rooms for smaller groups. Conference groups often meet in one half
and have lunch in the other. With a first-rate lighting system and coffered
12-foot ceilings, the Pacific Sunset Room is very popular.
The Frank Bowman Summit Room, a smaller conference room
off the main meeting area is used for smaller groups of 24-40 people.
Food service in The Pointe is catered by the campus Forty-Niner Shops.
Info: 562-985-7137. |
