Almost immediately following the base-closure decision, the Fort Ord task force, which had focused its energies on keeping the base open, met to begin studying alternatives for the future use of the property (it also carried on with its efforts against closure). According to the San Francisco Chronicle, "Ideas include the fanciful, such as luxury hotels along the fort's scenic coastline and even an amusement park on the scale of Disneyland, and the mundane: industrial parks, office buildings, and recreational areas along the coast." The article also explained some of the urgency behind the search for a solution: "The biggest worry for the towns surrounding the base is that the Army could pull out starting in 1993 and not dispose of the land for four years, leaving Monterey County with an $809 million hole in its economy."11
The idea of a higher education facility at Fort Ord appears to have originated at San Jose State in the form of an inquiry into the feasibility of moving the Salinas off-campus center to the base.12 The president of San Jose State and members of his administration met with Congressman Panetta to discuss possibilities early in July 1991. At that time, San Jose State's interest involved about 700 of the base's 28,000 acres, a site considered sufficient to accommodate about 15,000 students. (Approximately 800 students were enrolled at the Salinas off-campus center, and San Jose State's lease in Salinas was due to expire in about four years.)
The potential for higher education at Fort Ord received its initial boost from off-campus center to full-service university almost immediately in the form of an article in the Monterey County Herald: "No final decision is near, but it was reassuring to learn last week that a major university [emphasis added] is one of the possibilities for the sprawling military facility."13
The notion of a new university campus qua economic solution spread quickly. The Herald quoted Congressman Panetta as saying that "San Jose State University's proposal should be examined seriously," and it continued with this assessment: "He was not underestimating matters . . . when he called it `a very important and exciting proposal. . . . It could help replace some of the economic loss resulting from the closure of Fort Ord and serve as an attraction of the private sector.' "14
Most of the press coverage demonstrated enthusiasm for the proposal, but some of it also referred to the cleanup problem: "Still, long before any usage of Fort Ord can be decided upon, the nagging issue of the toxic waste problem at the base remains to be solved. An effective cleanup obviously is required."15
During the next few months, the concept began to evolve as the Cal State system joined the ranks of those who were beginning to display interest. In September 1991, the chancellor of Cal State and representatives of the California Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC) visited Fort Ord at the invitation of State Senator Henry Mello of Watsonville. A couple of weeks later, CSU officials formally notified CPEC of discussions about using a portion of the property.16
In October, the CSU Board of Trustees adopted a resolution endorsing exploration of the possibilities at Fort Ord.17 In the Board's resolution, the opportunity was still defined in terms of an off-campus center, although the possibility of future expansion into a full-fledged institution--but not yet a distinct university campus--also was introduced.
At this point, San Jose State was still an active participant and the most visible contender for space at the base; by November, its Fort Ord site requirements had increased from 700 to 1,000 acres ("including houses, barracks, and other facilities") for what was still envisioned as a satellite campus.
Free land and the active San Jose State initiative also began to alter Cal State system priorities; the San Jose State bid elevated the Monterey County campus request ahead of the Ventura area on Cal State's expansion list. The potential availability of free facilities also began to affect the institutional concept. To the extent that educational planning had been a consideration, the continued dominance of the vision of an off-campus center implied a concomitant continuation of the programming of the Salinas and main campuses of San Jose State--requiring an emphasis on a commuter institution. About this time, however, the prospect of barracks that could be converted to dormitories and the weakness of the region's demographic projections began to influence the institutional vision. While a new approach to educational programming (i.e., a university of the 21st century) was still in the future, the San Jose State prospect anticipated the further metamorphosis into a full-fledged campus of some sort, as is reflected in the following statement: "For the first five years on the post, the university expects to maintain its upper-division and graduate programs (i.e., in the manner apparent in the Salinas center). Eventually the campus is to offer a four-year degree program, including lower-division classes."18
The local economy and the availability of free land and facilities--rather than unmet educational needs and imaginative programming--were still the central considerations.