Uncertainty surrounding the state’s capital budget bill is leaving some Ohio University construction projects, including renovations to the Old Baker Center, up in the air.
Construction on the Scripps College of Communication’s new building cannot begin until funding from the state comes through, but some OU administrators are not sure when or whether that will happen.
Currently, there is no provision in Ohio law that requires the state to pass a capital budget, which funds construction and renovation projects throughout the state, said Dave Pagnard, director of communications for Ohio’s Office of Budget and Management.
“We haven’t prepared a timeline at this point (for passing a capital budget) because we’re in the midst of passing an operating budget,” Pagnard said.
State legislators must pass an operating budget by July 1, and the Ohio Senate and House of Representatives are now discussing possible changes to the bill before it is put to a vote.
The last time Ohio passed a capital budget was June 2008 for fiscal years 2009 and 2010. Although the state is interested in passing a capital budget for fiscal year 2012, that process would probably not begin until this fall, Pagnard said.
This timeline does not mesh with some OU administrators’ expectations, however, and could delay construction projects such as the transformation of Old Baker Center into the new Scripps College’s Schoonover Center of Communication.
The new center would house all five schools in the Scripps College, some of which are currently scattered throughout different buildings on campus.
The center’s opening, previously expected to be January 2013, has already been delayed six months until fall 2013. If the state does not pass a capital bill this fall, that date could get pushed back another six months.
“We’re all in the same boat, the sooner the better,” E.W. Scripps School of Journalism Director Robert Stewart said. “… Every semester that this is delayed, it delays the ultimate occupation of that building.”
Stewart added that not all five schools in the Scripps College would move into the building at the same time, so those scheduled to move in later are facing an
even longer delay of up to five years.
OU would need two capital budgets to pass in order to fully fund the project, but the university might still move ahead with the interior demolition of Old Baker Center this summer using private donations for the Schoonover Center to fund it, Scripps College of Communication Dean Greg Shepherd said.
The Schoonover Center is on OU’s “wish list” of projects to fund through state money. There is no guarantee that the state will decide to help finance the project, said John Day, associate provost for academic budgeting.
“You don’t want to start a project and have the money not show up,” he said.
Eric Burchard, OU’s director of government relations, also referenced this lack of certainty in state capital funding.
“The legislature and the governor are so focused on the operating budget … that they rarely, if ever, mention the capital budget,” he said.
“There are no guarantees when it comes to state funding. … They will look at the resources they have and determine the size of the capital budget and where those resources are allocated throughout the state,” Burchard added.
Other buildings at OU — such as Clippinger Laboratories, McCracken Hall and Seigfred Hall — are also waiting on state money for infrastructure renovations.
“Under normal circumstances, (a capital budget) would have passed last spring,” Shepherd said. “… Everything is still up in the air. Our hope is that we’ll pass one in the fall.”
OU has so far solicited about $8.5 million in donations for the estimated $37 million to $40 million project, but the university is still expecting about $23.1 million to come from the state, Shepherd said.
Shepherd will no longer oversee the opening of the center; last week, he announced he is leaving for a similar position at the University of Miami effective July 1.
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