The University community breathed a sigh of relief after learning voters approved a bond issue in last week’s election that will bring $8 million to USM and $36.7 million to the University of Maine System (UMS).
University officials said the money would be used to build a parking garage and a multi-use community education facility.
“The garage will hold 1,200 cars. The net gain in spaces will total just over 600, since the garage will be built on the existing Bedford Street parking lot,” said Bob Caswell, executive director of Media and Community Relations. “That’s a major gain for a campus that currently has a total of 1,605 parking spaces.”
But the estimated cost of the garage and the community facility is $19.4 million, leaving more than $11 million the University must come up with on its own.
University officials said the project would likely mean increased fees for students the next two years, as well as tuition increases.
Officials also acknowledge the timing of the project doesn’t bode well for the University, as the state’s economy is shaky at best. Early last month, Governor Angus King ordered UMS officials to cut their current operating budget by $2.6 million to make up for state revenue shortfalls. The University also expects its health care costs to increase by $1.5 million during the next fiscal year.
“It’s really hard to be doing these two things at once: to be cutting (the budget) and moving forward on this project,” said Judy Ryan, assistant to the president.
“But things are going to get better and you can’t just sit there and wait,” shed said. “We have this money now.”
About $2.5 million of the $11.4 million not provided by the bond would be raised by fundraising from private sources, while the remaining $9 million would be generated by raising student fees starting next year.
“We’re very concerned with the cost for students and the cost for faculty and staff,” said Ryan.
She said the administration hasn’t decided if there would be an across-the-board fee for all students or just those interested in parking on campus.
But Ryan did say that parking fees at USM are currently very low compared to other urban campuses.
“When you look at a comparable university in an urban setting the average parking fee is $211 per year,” said Ryan.
The current cost for a parking sticker on the Portland campus is $35 per semester.
Ryan said that tuition increases are also a possible solution and she pointed out that this year’s increase was 3.5 percent while the national average for public institutions was 7 percent.
Caswell said there is a possibility the University would not be able to raise adequate funds. However, he said that based on previous research, the region recognizes the importance of USM to the community and would likely respond to fundraising requests.
Ryan said that if the University is having major problems raising money, there are alternatives.
“There are different phases of the project that can be pushed back if we need to,” she said. “But my sense is we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t doable.”
Caswell also addressed skepticism that the bond might not be used for a parking garage, as was the case with a similar bond over 10 years ago.
A similar bond, used to renovate the Glickman Family Library, was passed in 1988. A portion of that bond was intended to build a parking garage but was diverted to the development of the off-campus Marginal Way lot.
But the money approved by voters can’t be used for any other purposes, according to Caswell.
“Those funds (passed in the current legislation) can only be used for the purposes stated in the legislation. The $8 million has to be dedicated to the community education facility, which includes a parking garage,” said Caswell.
“This is not going to be a smooth or easy process,” said Caswell. “But the passage of Question 6 gave us our best, and for the foreseeable future our only chance at building a facility that will help this university better serve students and the community.”
The bond comes amid growing enrollment numbers, a greater number of cars on campus, and a resultant decrease in available parking spaces, according to Caswell.
The community education facility would feature a 400-500 seat lecture hall, and 15,000 square feet of classrooms, offices, and meeting rooms, similar to Woodbury Campus Center rooms A, B, and C.
According to Caswell, the expansion of office, classroom, and meeting spaces is necessary to accommodate increasing enrollment at USM, as well as the addition of several degree programs.
The parking garage would be the first phase of the project and is expected to be complete by the end of summer 2003. The project would likely not start sooner than 2003 due to fundraising, design and planning, and the need for compliance with city building codes, said Caswell.
– Executive Editor Steve Peoples contributed to this article.
Assistant News Editor Matt Clifford can be contacted at: [email protected]