PORTLAND – The committee that oversees all Oregon public universities questioned University of Oregon officials on the proposed sale of the Westmoreland apartment complex and heard testimony from students and community members Friday morning, but made no formal vote to approve the sale.
Members of the State Board of Higher Education, which is responsible for approving the final sale of the property, said they were disappointed by the University’s failure to develop solutions to mitigate the loss of the complex, home to 592 residents, and by the distrust and animosity developing between the administration and the community over the proposal.
In November, the board granted the University permission to proceed with planning the sale on the condition that officials continue their efforts to help the potentially displaced tenants keep the board informed.
In his update to the board, University President Dave Frohnmayer said the sale of the family housing property was set to receive Oregon Department of Justice approval this week and said opposition to the sale was misplaced, unjustified and based on “scare-rhetoric.”
“This is an action that is in the best interest of the students of the University of Oregon, present and future,” he said.
Board member Tim Nesbitt also expressed concern for the motivations behind the sale.
“Westmoreland is not a financial drain – it’s not a problem unto itself. What you’re saying is there’s a higher and better use for the resources,” he said. “We need to hear about the other use and it needs to have purpose.”
Nesbitt said that based on the information he had received, he would not be able to vote for the sale.
Frohnmayer said providing more information before proceeding was impossible since he could not gather more information without taking prohibited action. He also suggested that the board was welcome to fire him if they did not trust his judgment.
The board also allotted 15 minutes for public testimony.
Democratic Oregon Rep. Bob Ackerman of Eugene, Westmoreland tenants and ASUO Vice President Kyla Coy presented arguments to the board and recounted the complex’s diversity of residents. They also said the University’s plans to relocate residents were inadequate.
“The sale of Westmoreland will have a negative impact on the life of students,” she said, charging that the sale would price many student residents at Westmoreland out of a college education.
Board Vice President Kirby Dyess cautioned Frohnmayer that she had seen similar situations turn negative.
“I’m very troubled by the animosity and mistrust between the University and students,” she said. “These things don’t come out good unless both parties sit down and work out a solution.”
Senior Vice President and Provost John Moseley also addressed the board and said that Westmoreland’s future was still very much undecided, and emphasized that the University could not be sure if it would be sold to a private developer or a non-profit organization.
Moseley also said that the failure to acquire funds from the sale of the Westmoreland complex, which would be used to modernize existing residence halls and eventually attract students, would be catastrophic for the University.
“If we don’t do this, the University of Oregon is going to suffer in its ability to maintain enrollment,” he said.
He noted that the University, although presently building a new residence hall, was still far behind the competition in the quality of residence halls, which prospective students weigh heavily.
“Every single penny of the 14 million will be spent on housing,” Frohnmayer said.
According to the University, Westmoreland is currently valued at between $15-18 million and those funds will “provide a stream of revenue to housing for future development and will be used to acquire property sites that advance the mission of the university in Eugene and in Portland.”
Sites suggested by the University include the vacant Joe Romania property, the Oregon Department of Transportation building and the Baker Center (all in Eugene), or undetermined sites in Portland.
Moseley told the board that the availability of such sites east of campus was a “once-in-a-century” opportunity.
The Emerald attempted to contact University Housing Director Mike Eyster about the outcome of the meeting but was denied an interview by University spokeswoman Mary Stanik. She said that questions on Westmoreland were being diverted to Vice President for Finance and Administration Frances Dyke.
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