Saturday, November 9, 2019

Another One of Glenn Roquemore's Hobbyhorses: the Veterans Memorial Clock Tower

     OLDSTERS like the Reb and I will remember that Irvine Valley College once had a beloved landmark, namely, the ol’ “Clock Tower,” which was demolished by IVC Prez Glenn Roquemore in 2006.
     Evidently, the college had not done enough to maintain the structure (--um, why not?), and, according to Roquemore at the time, the continued presence of the Dang Thing became a safety issue. (Many of us were suspicious of such excuses. Roquemore had long revealed himself to be the kinda guy who'll cut down a tree—or an orange grove—at the drop of a hat.)
     So down it went.
     But, soon thereafter, there was talk of a replacement tower. The OC Register’s minimalist news item ("Irvine: Clock tower is gone," OC Reg, October 14, 2006) informed readers that “A new clock tower is proposed near the circle on campus or the student services center.”
     I believe that I served on the IVC Senate at the time. I don't recall the Academic Senate—i.e., the faculty—ever being consulted about this project.
     According to the SOCCCD Board Meeting Highlights, for the meeting of February 2008, the board approved the “concept of the Veterans Tribute Tower to be constructed at IVC.”
     The District Report of 2009 explains that
During the year our colleges … hold official veterans’ recognition ceremonies. Currently, there are projects to build distinctive campus memorials to the men and women who serve and have served our country so selflessly—a tribute clock tower at IVC and a memorial sculpture garden at Saddleback College.
     The latter, of course, was eventually built in 2010. (See here.)
     The district mentioned the IVC tribute tower again a year later:
Both Darryl [Cox] and Tom [Mathavorn] hope to raise the profile of veterans at IVC in the future. “We really need a place for vets to get together,” says Tom. … Other priorities for the future include ... funding and finishing the planned IVC Veterans Memorial Clock Tower project. (SOCCCD report to the community, 2010)
     For what it’s worth, the project was mentioned again in an obituary for Glenn’s father in 2013:
In lieu of flowers donations to the Irvine Valley College Foundation Veterans Memorial Clock Tower Project www.ivc.edu/foundation/Pages/default.aspx, or the Wounded Warrior Project, would be greatly appreciated by the family.
     The link to the Foundation no longer works. (Not for me, anyway.)


     I can find no mention of a “veterans’ clock tower” project in any of the available IVC Foundation reports (See).
     I did, however, find this very recent reference to a bidding opportunity, at SOCCCD, for constructing the IVC "Veterans Tribute Tower":

Construction Bid Source, 2019
IVC Veterans Tribute Tower Project, Irvine, CA
Orange County
Owner Reference: 351
10/28/2019
Past bid date
Pre-Bid: Login or create an account to see more project details. Basic membership is FREE
Estimate: $580,000.00
Trades: General Contractor
Licenses: B
The Contractor’s Work includes a Irvine Valley College Veterans Tribute Tower. Scope of work includes but is not limited to architectural, structural, electrical and site work, pursuant to work delineated in the attached Drawings by Perkins-Eastman Dougherty. Project duration is 165 days. Bonds required.
     (See also here.)
     During Thursday’s meeting of the IVC Academic Senate, the subject of the veterans' tower project came up. We were told that the price tag for the project was over $1 million and that over $100K had already been spent.
     A question arose: who wants this thing? Who’s been pushing for it? (Those on hand who'd seen the plans were decidedly unimpressed by them.)
     It soon became clear that the faculty senate of this college (IVC) was never consulted about the veterans’ tower project.
     And no one in the room seemed disposed to defend it.
     It was another one of Glenn’s “special” projects.
     Oh my.

From IVC's 1988 catalog

FURTHER READING:
Glenn's hero 

Roy's obituary in LA Times and Register: "we were lucky to have you while we did"

  This ran in the Sunday December 24, 2023 edition of the Los Angeles Times and the Orange County Register : July 14, 1955 - November 20, 2...