Students and administrators at San Bernardino Valley College want to build a new campus center. But because of previous problems, student leaders have been reluctant to help pay for it.

Now, after a two-year stalemate over the use of Associated Students funds to help pay for the center, both sides are optimistic that they will reach an agreement before the semester ends in May. The money would come from a $1-per-unit fee that the Associated Students began collecting about 10 years ago to maintain, refurbish and rebuild the campus center. The account has more than $900,000.

About four years ago, administrators asked the Student Senate for $250,000 from the account to remodel the office of disabled-student services in the campus center, Associated Students President Antonio Vidal said. Officials told the students that in return, they would get a game room in the center.

The Student Senate approved the money and the office was remodeled, but the game room never materialized.

Now, administrators want the students to sign over $600,000 to help build a $10 million campus center. The old one must be replaced along with several other buildings, because it is on an earthquake fault.

But Vidal said the students do not want to give the money away this time unless they have a written agreement that they will have more office space, a meeting room and a game room or cybercafe.

"We just want them to follow through with the plans," Vidal said.

Valley College President Sharon Caballero said the college intended to follow through, but she said the students have changed their minds several times about whether they wanted a game room or a cybercafe.

"It's not that we don't want to do these things," she said. "It slowed the process down as they have examined other alternative things they would like us to do instead."

Vidal said the students did not change their minds about the game room until recently and are now certain they want a cybercafe with computers and a counter to buy coffee. But he also said there has been plenty of miscommunication in the past between administrators and student government leaders, partly because many students representatives had come and gone.

Communication has been much better this year, and administrators are working with the students, he said.

Kay Ragan, interim vice president of student services, has been acting as the Associated Students adviser for about two months. She said part of the problem has also come from not having a permanent student government adviser for at least two years. A trusted adviser could have helped both sides communicate more effectively.

"I know how critical it is to have continuity," she said. "That has not been available here."

Caballero does not want the students to approve the funding until all of their questions are answered and they are comfortable with what they are doing.

"I sure understand their caution," she said, adding that students do not normally have to handle such large sums of money.

If the students decide not to contribute the money, she said, the school will rebuild the campus center anyway, but it will not be able to afford to build one as large as it would like. The college will put computers in part of the cafeteria as a kind of cybercafe regardless of whether they get the money, she added.

A new resolution to spend the $600,000 on rebuilding the campus center will be on a Student Senate agenda for one of its meetings next month. Vidal hopes it will make both sides happy. The revised document puts in writing that the students will get room for their cybercafe and more office space in both the existing campus center and the new one.

As long as the administration agrees to the new resolution, he thinks students will agree to hand over the money.

"I feel there's no reason not to pass it," he said. "We just want them to hold their side of the bargain."

Jonna Palmer can be reached by e-mail at jpalmer@pe.com or by phone at (909) 890-4457.