Friday, July 18, 2008
PSU launches $90M project
School itself must raise $30 million to build a new business building
Portland Business Journal - by Aliza Earnshaw Business Journal staff writer
A $90 million new building will give Portland State University's business school some much-needed breathing space.
The 130,000-square-foot building, to be located at Southwest Park and Southwest Market opposite Lincoln Hall, will supplement the business school's current quarters on Southwest Broadway. The business school should be able to move in by 2013.
The project, to be designed by downtown Portland architecture firm Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects LLP, will be funded by a combination of state bonds and private donations.
"Scott has to raise $30 million," said Lindsay Desrochers, vice president of finance and administration at PSU, referring to business school dean Scott Dawson.
Dawson plans to announce at a gathering for donors and prospective donors next week that he's already raised $5 million for the project.
That includes a $1 million donation from Tim Boyle, CEO of Columbia Sportswear Co. Doug Fieldhouse, CEO of payments firm Vesta Corp., said he's making a "significant contribution," but wouldn't name a figure.
Dawson said the business school badly needs more space. The school expects 2,200 students this fall, between its graduate and undergrad programs, and including both full-time and part-time students.
"We have only half of our classes meeting in our building now," he said. "University of Oregon's business school has three times the square footage per student that we do."
Students working on group projects have to meet at Starbucks, at local pubs, and even in the hallways of the business school building, as there are no meeting rooms or study rooms available. Other business schools have space set aside for group work, Dawson said.
Just as important as actual space is the need to create a building that publicly signals PSU's ambitions to be a landmark for the city and the state.
"People want a great university here, and that means having a great business school," Dawson said. "A lot of it is about building a space where people want to be, building a campus that's not just a commuter campus. It's part of the turnaround for Portland State."
Once Dawson raises the $30 million, PSU will ask the state to issue $30 million in general obligation bonds. State-issued revenue bonds will raise another $30 million. That will be repaid by leasing retail space in the new building, and with fees from below-ground parking included in the project.
These requests are part of a $532 mllion bond request for capital projects throughout the entire seven-campus Oregon University System. More than 40 percent of the total is expected to come from general obligation bonds, which the universities repay.
Boyle is making his gift to the business school because of the company's relationship with the university. Columbia helps its employees with educational expenses, and many attend PSU.
Boyle and his wife, Mary Boyle, have made a number of gifts to local campuses, including a recent $5 million donation to the University of Oregon in Eugene. Other campuses receiving their support include private schools Reed College, University of Portland and Oregon College of Arts and Crafts.
While some of those are private, Boyle said the public campuses have a particularly strong need.
"Higher education needs a lot of help, since the state has basically abandoned the (funding) role," Boyle said.
Oregon ranks 45th nationally in per capita spending for higher education, despite a 6.5 percent funding hike for capital construction and operations during the 2007-2009 biennium.
Next year, higher-ed leaders plan to ask for a capital construction budget of $1.36 billion, a significant hike over the $561 million they received in the 2007-2009 biennium.
The university system has a $700 million backlog of deferred maintenance on its 1,200 buildings, which are about half of all state-owned property.
aearnshaw@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3433
http://portland.bizjournals.com/port...ml?t=printable
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