Oakland Hall vote postponed two weeks

A group of state officials decided to delay approval of a planned 650-bed North Campus dorm, as a looming budget deficit makes some state officials hesitant to sign off on the building's $88 million price tag.

The Maryland Board of Public Works decided to push back voting on the approval of Oakland Hall, which will be located in the Denton Community, because members wanted to know why the university wasn't using a private-public partnership to build the dorm, like they did with University Courtyards and South Campus Commons.

The board - which consists of Gov. Martin O'Malley (D), Comptroller Peter Franchot (D) and Treasurer Nancy Kopp (D) - is responsible for approving state construction projects and contracts.

The dorm, named after the Garrett County seat, will cost $88 million and is intended to house freshmen. Construction is expected to start sometime next summer. Assuming the schedule remains the same, the dorm should be completed by fall 2011 or January 2012 at the latest.

Franchot said in rough economic times - the state is anticipating a $195 million deficit this year and a possible $1 billion deficit next year - the state needs to be extra careful how it spends money.

"I believe it is important to ask the tough, but necessary questions to ensure that taxpayers are getting the best value for their dollar. In the coming days, I look forward to working with the Governor, Treasurer and university administration to keep this vital student housing project moving forward in a [timely] and cost-efficient manner," Franchot said in a statement.

The delay in the vote means the Board of Public Works will consider the dorm at its Oct.15 meeting, when hundreds of millions of dollars in budget cuts will be recommended. The university's budget is expected to be cut by about $12 million at the meeting. The state also already deferred some money that was scheduled to be spent on transportation projects, including the Purple Line and Route 1 renovations.

The dorm is important as the university tries to move past a housing crunch that resulted in a mass exodus of juniors and seniors from on-campus dorms to off-campus housing.

While the board may be hoping a private-public partnership could lessen how much the state would invest in the dorm, university officials said that financing model just isn't practical for Oakland Hall, primarily because the dorm is intended for freshmen.

"We've done [private-public partnerships] for junior-senior type students," said Pat Mielke, an assistant vice president for student affairs at the university.

Mielke said some of the differences between private-public partnerships and regular dorms would make things difficult for freshmen - they would have 12-month leases instead of 10-month one-time-payment housing agreements, pay different amounts for rent and live in apartment-style housing rather than traditional dorms, which may discourage interaction with other students.

Also, the dorm is far from the other private-public partnerships on the campus.

"Our preference, from a planning point of view, would be to keep the [public-private partnerships] over on South Campus," Mielke said.

John Farley, an assistant vice president for administrative affairs, said a public-private partnership would create other logistical problems, as well. The university planned on building a central air-conditioning unit in the basement of the new Denton Community dorm, but trying to house university equipment in a private building could be problematic.

However, the deferment shouldn't throw off the dorm's construction timeline, provided the board approves the project at the Oct. 15 meeting. Contract bids for the project aren't due until later this month, and if that deadline can still be met, the project will remain on schedule.

If the university has to replace the dorm with a private-public partnership, the process would be delayed by at least a semester, Mielke said.

Oakland Hall was finally approved last month by the Board of Regents - the governing board that oversees most of the state's public colleges and universities - after years of arguing among regents and university administrators. The regents approved the dorm's funding after the university proved it was also pursuing private housing options off-campus. Oakland Hall is meant to replace New and Old Leonardtown, which are being torn down to make way for the East Campus development.

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