RAMBLING over our beloved Grounds this fall, one thing, besides blistering heat, is inescapable: construction. Wherever one chooses to stroll -- down Rugby Road, along the East Range, through New Dorms and almost anywhere south of New Cabell Hall, the sound of heavy machinery and the skeletal specter of cranes invade the ear and eye. Perhaps some of this construction is necessary, such as the refurbishment of historical buildings such as Cocke and Rouss Halls, but one must question whether or not all of the new construction is absolutely necessary, and as a follow up to that, whether or not the funds involved might be better used elsewhere.
Least intrusive to anyone who does not visit Randall or Levering Halls is what will eventually be the new School of Commerce attached to the back of Rouss Hall. The Commerce School's Web site declares that one of the project's goals is to provide the Commerce School with "an inspiring physical presence on the Lawn, worthy of those who worked so hard to make the School great" and in doing so, to provide a space that can help keep the Commerce School among the nation's finest by attracting the top students and faculty.
One wonders, however, whether or not the new building is really necessary at all. The McIntire School climbed to the number two spot amongst undergraduate business schools, according to BusinessWeek, in its old home in Monroe Hall, which, while a venerable building, remains significantly more comfortable than most facilities occupied by lowly College of Arts and Sciences students. If one wanted to improve the Commerce School with $60 million, perhaps they might be better used towards offering higher salaries to the professors the school believes the new building will lure to Charlottesville. According to Jim Travisano, director of communications for the McIntire School, it is necessary due to inadequate space that faculty members have had to share offices. He compared faculty recruiting amongst business schools to an "arms race" and said "if you don't have a world class facility it's hard to do world class recruiting." In any event, it is too late to rail against a new Commerce School, as it ought to be completed in the spring of 2008.
At least I as a student will be able to see the new Commerce School and find solace in the fact that those of us in the College inherited Monroe Hall and, according to Travisano, will have expanded opportunities in conjunction with the Comm School. Other areas of construction on Grounds provide unsightly messes and are bigger wastes of money.
For me the most perplexing piece of construction is the wasteland in New Dorms between Tuttle and O-Hill. A column earlier this week argued that this short term eyesore and assault on the ears of first-years will lead to "long-term benefits." But according to that column, long-term here means ten years long, as since my first year that field has gone from a patch of dirt to a grassy field to a patch of dirt surrounded by green walls -- and all so the first year class can increase by 10 percent, which will inevitably increase construction in the future. One can only wonder where the cycle will end.
The biggest waste of money, however, remains the South Lawn Project. I question whether or not the University needs to spend $105 million on new facilities. Perhaps there are flaws with the current facilities (again, according to the Campaign for the College Web site, a lack of space for faculty), but the entire grandiose project seems overblown and excessive. It seems like the University is taking the basic requirements for functioning, then finding the most expensive way to meet them.
Couldn't that $105 million be used for other purposes? Much has been said in recent weeks in this publication about financial aid: $105 million could go a long way towards reducing tuition and thus the need for financial aid. Another use could be scholarships for studying abroad, as one of the goals of the College Campaign and South Lawn Project is to make the average student a better global citizen. What better way than helping them pay the excessive study abroad expenses?
As you can probably tell, I don't like construction. I would rather get by with what we have than sink a lot of money into glitzy new buildings. Much as we might want a shiny new "state-of-the-art" facility for every program, we ought to look at what we need instead of what we want, and realize that a new building is not the answer to everything.
Robby Colby's column appears Thursdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at rcolby@cavalierdaily.com.
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