Related trustee stories:
By Jacquie Powers and David Stewart
The New York state budget stalemate has caused delays in several areas of university operations, members of Cornell's Board of Trustees learned at committee meetings last week.
The lack of a state budget continues to have a negative impact on timetables for State University Construction Fund (SUCF) projects at Cornell. In its meeting March 28, the Buildings and Properties Committee learned that projects worth several millions of dollars continue to be delayed until a state budget is adopted.
Members of the Land Grant and Statutory College Affairs Committee were told they would not know the full extent of the proposed reduction of the state appropriation for the statutory colleges, and therefore would not be able to enact statutory college tuition rates for 1996-97, until the state budget is approved.
By law, the state budget must be in place by the start of the new fiscal year, April 1, but historically that deadline has not been met. Earlier this week, the Legislature enacted a temporary, one-month spending plan until a final budget could be negotiated.
There was good news on one SUCF project at the March 28 meeting: the addition to Mann Library. Bids came in at $16,779,000 -- about $2 million below estimates.
Sarkisian Brothers Construction of Binghamton is expected to begin the project this summer, pending adoption of the state budget. A World Wide Web page has been established for the Mann Library project and can be reached at <http://www.sas.cornell.edu/rcc/index.html>. Comments may be directed to Murphy.
The report was presented to the full board March 29, and its overall goal and key principles are expected to be considered for approval by the trustees at their May meeting.
Key elements of the proposal include construction of a new residential facility; expanded faculty participation in residential programs; periodic review of those programs; a gradual shift to more upperclass participation in campus housing; a phased-in limitation on freshmen living in program and theme houses; and at least a five-year moratorium on new program and theme houses.
Trustees at both the committee meeting and the meeting of the full board praised the report, based on their initial briefing, for its reasoned, comprehensive, yet specific approach to housing problems that have plagued the university for decades.