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For SCSU, 2020 hindsight

Ben Johnson

Opinions Editor

 

At long last, the Buley Library addition is open for business. The results - a well-designed building that stayed at least reasonably within budget. This bodes well for the next round of construction in the Connecticut State University System, a $950 million program called CSUS 2020.

For Southern, CSUS 2020 will mean a long-overdue $20.4 million Academic Laboratory Building, a new parking garage, and more than $21 million worth of general “code compliance/infrastructure improvements.”
Fortunately for us, this new round of construction will come with oversight that was sorely lacking in the multi-billion-dollar UCONN 2000 project that preceded it. 

While many newly constructed UCONN buildings were later plagued by dangerous code violations - ranging from carbon monoxide leaks to crumbling facades - the state is mandating closer supervision this time.
The Department of Public Works and the Department of Public Safety, whose involvement was not previously required, will now consult on building design and project management throughout the construction campaign. The controversial use of privately issued bonds to fund the UCONN 2000 project will be replaced by more accountable regular-issue Connecticut state bonds.

For many years, the funding directed at the UCONN system has dwarfed Connecticut State University System funding nearly 2-1 ratio. UCONN's Storrs campus now finds itself struggling to support further expansion and to find the funds to pay for UCONN 2000's legacy of damage and cost overruns. Southern, Eastern, Western and Central Connecticut State Universities, meanwhile, are well positioned to benefit from an intensive building campaign, with many outdated structures long in need of renovation or replacement.

After many years of standing in line behind UCONN for funding, the Connecticut University System may have finally caught a break by coming in second.