The first meeting of the Buildings and Construction Committee was convened on 20th March 1958 in the Episcopal Palace.  It was presided over by the mayor of Pereira Dr. Oscar Vélez Marulanda.  On this occasion Dr. Jorge Roa Martínez was requested to inform the Committee as to the rulings made in Bogotá over the University’s future.

Dr. Jorge Roa Martínez made clear that as a result his meetings with various government Ministers and thanks to the presence of Monseñor Álvarez he had obtained from the Minister of Education a guarantee to the effect that the university would receive an annual budget of $200,000.00 from the state for the construction of the university.  In this way the government would assume the responsibility of financing the building whilst the planning department also offered to take this project into account within the five-year plan.  Furthermore the Minister took the opportunity to request that at the first opportunity the Mayor of Pereira make himself known to the Ministry of Education in Bogotá so as to render the promises official.

The Universidad Tecnológica de Pereira was made up of a plot of 18 hectares in which the main pavilions of the building were constructed, these were to be completed in such a way as to achieve the overriding objectives whilst all the time remaining faithful to the original plans.  The first stage of building covered 7000m squared as specified in the documentation provided by the architect Gustavo Villegas Campo.  The support of organizations such as The society for the Improvement of Pereira under the leadership of Rafael Cuartas Gaviria, the Mayor of Pereira Dr. Oscar Vélez Marulanda, the National Association of Industries, the Chamber of Commerce.  The latter sent a memorandum to the President of the fifth Commision of the Senate in favour of said construction. 

The first phase in the construction and development of the university covered an area of 7000m squared at a cost of $350 per square metre and amounting to a total budget of $235,000.00.  In April 1960 the idea for the three faculties was brought once more into question – Site Design Managers, Mechanical builders, Chemical Technicians.  In a conversation held between Dr. Jorge Roa Martínez, and the nation’s President Dr. Alberto Lleras Camargo the latter opposed the proposal stating “that site design was an art subject and should not have a faculty named after it.  It was more suitable to create a Faculty of Industrial Management and Administration”.

Dr. Gilberto Cano Gallo. Principal of the Technical Institute of Industry declared himself to be in agreement with the President adding that it would nevertheless be possible to create other Faculties in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering.  Site design however was more properly a specialist subject of the Institute to which it was affiliated “an institute that should work parallel to the university since it was ultimately responsible for the foundation studies of what would later be considered at degree level within the university itself.  Indeed it was Dr Gallo that was charged with “the planning of the initial faculties with a view to submitting it before the Board of Directors of the Universidad Nacional for their approval”.

What is more he proposed that the initial petitions be for the central administration building and classrooms as there was as yet no clear indication of what faculties would constitute the original university.  On 16 May 1960 from the study of the town hall Dr. Jorge Roa Martínez took up his position as Principal of the Universidad Tecnológica de Pereira under the the Act of Possession 434.