Spring Break
Facilities bill climbs to $620 million
Tirza Austin
Issue date: 3/25/08 Section: News
With its brick bridge and large windows, the Architecture Building's elegant face hides a secret from passersby.
Inside, rust stains dripping down the white pillars supporting the building make the truth plain: This building, along with dozens of other older buildings on the campus, is badly in need of renovation. The cost to bail the university out of its renovation backlog climbs by tens of millions of dollars every year with no end in sight.
"There are more requirements than resources, constantly," said Jack Baker, director of operations and maintenance. "The juggling act is a day-to-day activity."
Today, it would cost $620 million to completely catch up with building renovations, compared with $500 million in 2005.
University officials said they do not receive enough funding from the state to keep up with year-to-year maintenance operations.
But for students and faculty, leaky roofs, temperamental heating and antiquated electrical systems have become more than inconveniences - they are costing the university in the long run.
Del Propst, facilities manager for the chemical and life sciences, said many of the labs inthe Chemistry Building haven't been renovated since they were built in the 1960s. Fumigation systems, workbenches, lightsand ceilings all require repairs.
Garth C. Rockcastle, dean of the architecture college, described conditions in his school's building as "structurally problematic." If it weren't for the rusting steel beams inside the pillars that support the building, the concrete walls and ceiling would likely have collapsed from erosion, he said. He added that the buildings aren't very well insulated, causing wasted funds on unnecessary heating and air conditioning.
"It's a university structure," Rockcastle said. "They built it. They should protect it with a thick, insulated roof."
Baker said though the ceiling was in urgent need of repair, it is not unsafe. He said he hopes to repair the roof this year - a project that could cost as much as 80 percent of his $1 million roof-repair budget for the entire university. Baker said he wished he could repair a lot of the roofs on the campus, but the Architecture Building's roof is the most pressing case.
Inside, rust stains dripping down the white pillars supporting the building make the truth plain: This building, along with dozens of other older buildings on the campus, is badly in need of renovation. The cost to bail the university out of its renovation backlog climbs by tens of millions of dollars every year with no end in sight.
"There are more requirements than resources, constantly," said Jack Baker, director of operations and maintenance. "The juggling act is a day-to-day activity."
Today, it would cost $620 million to completely catch up with building renovations, compared with $500 million in 2005.
University officials said they do not receive enough funding from the state to keep up with year-to-year maintenance operations.
But for students and faculty, leaky roofs, temperamental heating and antiquated electrical systems have become more than inconveniences - they are costing the university in the long run.
Del Propst, facilities manager for the chemical and life sciences, said many of the labs inthe Chemistry Building haven't been renovated since they were built in the 1960s. Fumigation systems, workbenches, lightsand ceilings all require repairs.
Garth C. Rockcastle, dean of the architecture college, described conditions in his school's building as "structurally problematic." If it weren't for the rusting steel beams inside the pillars that support the building, the concrete walls and ceiling would likely have collapsed from erosion, he said. He added that the buildings aren't very well insulated, causing wasted funds on unnecessary heating and air conditioning.
"It's a university structure," Rockcastle said. "They built it. They should protect it with a thick, insulated roof."
Baker said though the ceiling was in urgent need of repair, it is not unsafe. He said he hopes to repair the roof this year - a project that could cost as much as 80 percent of his $1 million roof-repair budget for the entire university. Baker said he wished he could repair a lot of the roofs on the campus, but the Architecture Building's roof is the most pressing case.
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dbackdaily reader
posted 3/25/08 @ 9:59 AM EST
You are my hero
It won't change till someone dies...
posted 3/25/08 @ 5:19 PM EST
Nothing ever changes unless someone dies. Oh wait, that already happened when that worker was electrocuted in the Physics Building. This University sucks. (Continued…)
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