Saint Mary's University has proposed a $23.3 million renovation to the McNally Building, home to its Faculty of Arts. Photo: Sydnee Bryant
Federal budget
Universities campaign for infrastructure spending
Nova Scotia institutions look to federal budget to fix deferred maintenance backlog
(0)When the Harper government unveils the 2009 federal budget on Tuesday, universities will be looking for an injection of money for infrastructure projects to both improve the post-secondary education system and fuel the economy.
The Council of Nova Scotia University Presidents, a committee of the Association of Atlantic Universities, met on Friday at the University of King's College. Its members identified $85 million of campus infrastructure renewal projects to show they are prepared, should they be included in the expected economic stimulus package.
"We think we have put together a very strong and persuasive package," says Peter Halpin, president of the association. "It's got a real strong economic impact aspect to it. Plus, we have universities right across the province, so it would be a provincewide initiative."
Most of the items on the association's list deal with deferred maintenance issues, which arose when budget constraints caused the institutions to neglect routine upkeep of campus facilities over many years.
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The crumbling exterior of the Dalhousie Arts Centre is symptomatic of the deferred maintenance problem facing Nova Scotia universities. Photo: Sydnee Bryant
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Gillian Wood, assistant vice-president of government relations at Dalhousie, says deferred maintenance has been growing at universities since the recession of the early 1990s and public funding is vital to addressing the problem.
"It's either tuition or government, that's about it," she says, referring to funding sources. "It's very challenging to raise money for things you can't see. Like, electrical things are in the wall. How unsexy is that? We don't get donors that are interested in fixing old buildings up."
Colin Dodds, president and professor of finance at Saint Mary's University, estimates $350 million of deferred maintenance projects exist on Nova Scotia campuses and the outlined projects only begin to address the problem.
"We're nowhere close," he says. "What this could do is to help us catch up. This is not going to get us there, but a third of the loaf is a heck of a lot better than no loaf at all."
The challenge of deferred maintenance is facing all universities in the province.
"It's a very modest amount of money, compared to what we would need to really fix the campus up," says William Barker, president of the University of King's College, of the school's $345,000 proposal. "There are millions of dollars on this tiny campus of deferred items."
‘We could go out tomorrow and start digging and pouring cement'
While infrastructure spending has been identified as a way to create jobs and spending during a recession, governments usually focus on projects such as building roads and highways. But Alan Shaver, vice-president financial at Dalhousie University, says boosting post-secondary funding has several benefits.
"There's a simple, straightforward dollar improvement from the cash flow, but there's also an incalculable benefit from the idea flow. You just get so many different intellectual communities that bring vibrancy and productivity to the region," he says.
The association's plan projects a return of $164 million in direct and indirect revenue, almost double the initial cost. The economic impact would result from additional salaries and tax revenues the infrastructure investment would create.
"If you're looking into getting money into people's pockets, as soon as those people get their pay packet, they will be spending it," Dodds says. "The spinoff is what we call the multiplier effect - if you put a dollar in, you're going to get more than a dollar back."
Shaver says the current economic situation requires an immediate reaction.
"There's no point making a proposal that is just a gleam in the eye and is going to take two years of planning and then another three years of construction to realize. We could go out tomorrow and start digging and pouring cement."
Environmental and economic impacts key to project planning
While helping the economy, many of the proposed items also reflect environmental concerns by reducing energy consumption, says Brian Jessop, acting vice-president of administration at Mount Saint Vincent University.
"We're trying to target those types of things in our applications and submissions, so that it will meet more than one mandate. One mandate might be to increase employment. The other mandate might be to reduce your carbon footprint. So if we can do two of those, we think that that's a good thing," he says.
Barker says he doesn't know if university infrastructure will be a part of the government's budget.
"The federal government is totally unpredictable. I don't know how to judge what they will come up with. I could even be in Ottawa sitting in a room with a group of them and I still wouldn't have an idea."
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