Trustees to discuss renovations

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Although it still is waiting on finalizations of the state budget, the MSU Board of Trustees will meet today to discuss plans for the university and request appropriations from the state for the 2010-11 year.

The board is scheduled to meet at 9:30 a.m. in room 401 of the Administration Building.

Appropriations

The board’s finance committee will recommend the approval of the appropriations request, which includes needs for the general fund, MSU Extension and the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station.

MSU Trustee Donald Nugent said the request is important to have in place.

“It’s an annual presentation that we make to the state … why we need some capital investment moneys,” he said. “The justification for it is exactly what MSU does for the state of Michigan.”

The state economy limits the amount of funding the university receives, Nugent said.

“The state just doesn’t have any money right now and that’s the problem,” he said. “The purpose is to have (the request) there … in case things turn around.”

Cyclotron

To meet the need for more office space, the board will be asked to authorize planning for a Cyclotron office addition.

What the building would look like and where it would be located are still unclear, said Bob Nestle, a university engineer.

“The approval to plan by the board is really the first step in the process of the planning that’s going to go on,” he said. “We don’t know all of the answers right now.”

The preliminary project cost estimate for the first phase of office construction is $8 million.

Renovations

The first floor common area of Hubbard Hall soon could see renovations if the board authorizes planning for the project.

Vennie Gore, assistant vice president for the Division of Residential and
Hospitality Services, said the Sparty’s convenience store, among other areas, will be renovated.

“(It) will involve a Sparty’s renovation piece,” he said. “The other components we are looking at is … lounge improvements for more of a student engagement center.”

Hubbard Hall will be part of MSU’s First Year Experience Program to help students adjust to the university, Gore said.

The preliminary cost estimate for this project is $2.6 million.

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