It’s hard not to notice the missing ceiling tiles and cracked walls in the EMU. But visitors may not see the rust on the main water valve for the building or the deep structural cracks throughout the building. For these reasons, many students and University officials believe the building should be renovated.
The EMU renovation was originally proposed in June 2011 and has since been a contentious issue. After students voted down a renovation two times, it’s unlikely the building will be renewed in the near future.
During his first month in office, former ASUO president Ben Eckstein@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Benjamin+Eckstein@@ and his staff worked to secure a vote before any ground was broken. After speaking with members of Student Affairs and attending a State Board of Higher Education@@http://www.ous.edu/state_board@@ meeting, Eckstein said the administration managed to guarantee a referendum, which was voted down in fall 2011.
Assistant Vice President for Capital Projects Gregg Lobisser@@http://renovation.uoregon.edu/src-faq/@@ has worked on the project since its beginning. After the referendum was voted down, he worked to create a committee consisting of one-third students, one-third EMU staff and one-third faculty and staff.
“There is more student participation than is typical,” Lobisser said. “There has been nothing like this in UO history.”
Lobisser explained that the building is in terrible shape and needs renovation.
“The systems built in the ’50s are shot, and many of the doors don’t shut tight,” he said.
Another vote was held this spring and was still not passed. Eckstein said one of the main reasons was affordability. The first vote stated that students would have to pay $65 per term to fund the project; the second vote said it would take $100 per term.
“Students are watching their tuition increase,” Eckstein said. “A project this expensive just adds to the cost of education. We need to have a serious conversation about how to do it in a way that’s more affordable.”
Former ASUO president Sam Dotters-Katz,@@http://oregoncommentator.com/2012/04/04/clusterfuck-in-review-sam-dotters-katz-calls-for-eckstein-and-taylors-removal/@@ who also spearheaded the Your EMU/SRC campaign this year, said students voted down the project for another reason.
“I believe that students voted down the EMU renovation because we as student leaders failed to overcome the misinformation and misunderstanding that was out there about the project,” he said. Dotters-Katz felt this year’s campaign didn’t reach out to enough students to inform them about the project.
Until students pass a renovation campaign, the project cannot move forward. After that, it will be brought to the State Board for approval and finally the Oregon State Legislature — only then can the overhaul begin.
“There isn’t anyone who doesn’t find some connection to the building,” Lobisser said. “Everyone feels a sense of ownership. That makes this project as hard as it gets and as good as it gets.”
This post has been edited to reflect that renovation of the EMU would call for a $100 per term fee.