Despite the effects of Gov. Scott Walker’s proposed budget cuts, student and university officials remain confident they will secure funding for the Rec Sports overhaul, although the future of the Campus Master Plan remains in question.
Foremost among projects included in the plan is the $223 million overhaul of the South East Recreational Facility, Natatorium and Near East and West Fields. Students approved the project in a spring 2014 referendum with 86.3 percent of students in favor.
Despite the University of Wisconsin System potentially facing over $300 million cuts, Director of Rec Sports John Horn remains confident the university will hold up its commitment to provide 43 percent of funding for the project, despite concerns over operational costs not related to construction, he said.
“There is a lot of uncertainty with everything regarding the state budget bill, but in terms of our plan moving forward, nothing has changed with our funding or our schedule and we’re moving forward as if there is going to be no impact to it, unless someone tells me different,” Horn said.
In last year’s referendum, students voted to fund the other 57 percent of the project through segregated fees, amounting to an increase of $108 per student per semester. The remaining 43 percent is university-funded through gifts, state funding, UW Athletics and Rec Sports program revenue.
Student Services Finance Committee Chair Devon Maier said the 57 percent of funding covered through segregated fees is secured and the athletic department’s contributions, around $13 million, are also locked in.
Still, some doubt exits regarding where the university might obtain money for its side of the deal. Maier said due to the current fiscal climate, contributions from the state are not expected.
Regarding donor gifts to the Rec Sports project, officials from the UW Foundation voiced concerns over the feasibility of finding donors within such a short time span.
Alisa Robertson, Chief Development Officer for the UW Foundation said the organization remains committed to finding donors ,although it will be challenging to direct them to the Rec Sports project and not scholarships, for instance.
“I am confident we will give it our best shot,” Robertson said. “The fundraising goal for the Rec Sports master plan is incredibly ambitious, both in terms of the overall campaign goal and the timeline. It’s a project that we are talking to a lot of people about.”
Although these challenges regarding donations are legitimate, Maier said this will probably just force the chancellor to reserve a larger portion of donor funds for the project.
“I would take the chancellor’s commitment [to the project’s funding] at face value,” he said.
Funding for the Campus Master Plan, which provides an outline for the next 20 years of campus development, remains up in the air. The 2005 version included plans to reconstruct Van Hise and Brogden Halls as well as the Humanities, Biotron and Engineering Research buildings, according to the plan.
SSFC will present the Master Plan to the State Building Commission at the end of March, he said.
“I think we’re going to be able to move forward,” Maier said. “If these projects get delayed, we’re going to be looking at higher expenditures on these projects simply due to inflation.”
Regarding the possible public authority model’s effect on construction, Maier said he believes it would allow campus to better adapt to student needs without state pressure.
Bill Elvey, Vice Chancellor for facilities planning and management at UW, voiced concerns about how the university would fund projects under the public authority, but reiterated more will become clear after the state building commission meets next month.
“In the draft legislation, they give the public authority the ability to borrow money,” Elvey said. “In theory the public authority would have to pay it back, so someone would have to question where the money would come from.” Whether this money would be the burden of students is still unclear, he said.
Correction: In a previous version of this post, Bill Elvey’s name was misspelled. In addition, UW Athletics contribution was incorrect. The Badger Herald regrets this error.
