Columist Steve Carp: UNLV may lose more than it gains

Thursday, May 15, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

NOBODY LIKES TO see price increases. Whether it's your rent, phone bill, a gallon of gas or going to the movies, it's no fun having to dig deeper into your pocket.

Charles Cavagnaro, UNLV's athletic director, claims he understands that. Yet he's prepared to risk alienating a good segment of his boosters next month by raising the price of their scholarship donation as well as hiking the cost of Rebel basketball tickets for everyone.

Cavagnaro claims there's a genuine need to raise additional money for the scholarship donor program. He also points to the inequity in the current program that has one person paying more money, in some cases substantially more, than the person sitting next to him.

He has the numbers to support his claims and frankly, I don't doubt him. Inflation has hit everything, including the cost of a college education. And while we would all love to buy a 1997 car at 1987 prices, the fact is, we can't.

My problem with the proposed increases is three-fold. First, I'm concerned about the donors who have been with the program since its inception in 1983. Is this how you repay their loyalty? Second, isn't there a viable alternative to raise the needed capital? Finally, I wonder about the timing. Just because the basketball team won 20 games for the first time in five years, does that make it right to hike the costs of the donor program?

Cavagnaro says the increase will be spread out over four years and would affect less than 40 percent of the donors. But it's not a question of how much or how many. It's the who that counts. Many of those who are going to be asked to ante up more already contribute to UNLV in other areas. In some cases, those donations are in the tens and even hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Why would you want to risk alienating those people? Why not try some major fund-raising efforts and target new sources of revenue?

Cavagnaro says the scholarship donor program is just that, an annual major fund-raiser. I see it as a thinly disguised personal-seat-license program where you pay twice for the same product. You can't purchase a UNLV basketball season ticket downstairs at the Thomas & Mack Center unless you donate to the scholarship donor program.

As athletic director of a university involved in big-time athletics in the '90s, Cavagnaro needs to lead the way on the fund-raising front. He needs to meet and befriend everyone in Las Vegas who can assist UNLV. It's a major part of his job.

Surely there are people who would be willing to lend a hand.

As for the inequity in pricing, the idea of full market value for all seats does make good business sense. But why not wait and see how the team does next season? If all indications point to a continued basketball renaissance, let the people know well ahead of time the need to raise prices and explain the equalizing plan.

It still may ruffle some feathers. But at least it wouldn't appear the athletic department was greedy or desperate.

Sometimes perception is more important than reality.