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UNC running out of room for growth

In a single decade, UNC’s physical space expanded at an unprecedented rate, filling up main campus and allowing enrollment and research to grow faster than ever before.

But state funding, which fueled that expansion, was cut off in 2010.

After expanding by about 50 percent in gross square feet in 10 years, main campus only has about 2 million square feet left to build on, said Bruce Runberg, associate vice chancellor for facilities planning. This caused UNC to look toward its off-campus property and begin the process of developing Carolina North.

The University accounted for growth in its long term planning, but space ran out faster than anticipated, said James Moeser, chancellor from 2000 to 2008.

“We’re really at the point now where to build new buildings on the main campus, we just about have to demolish something else. There are very few blank spaces left.”

But the two main factors that caused the need for growth, research and enrollment, have realigned to reveal a University still in the process of altering its identity.

Enrollment growth

Though long-term University plans expected 33,000 students by 2017, that level of growth is tapering off.

Ron Strauss, chairman of the enrollment policy advisory committee and executive vice provost, said there are currently no plans to increase enrollment.

“Just because there’s space doesn’t mean you can grow,” he said. “You need to have the faculty support and infrastructure to meet student needs.”

Strauss said UNC shouldn’t look to hire new faculty until it can support current faculty, who haven’t seen a riase in three years.

“It would be cynical to reduce the ability of faculty to help existing students just to accommodate new bodies on campus.”

Between 2000 and 2010, enrollment grew by 18 percent, a huge jump from previous decades.

Moeser said the growth occurred as UNC responded to the state’s overall population increase at the time.

“We were under enormous pressure from students and parents who wanted to get into this University,” he said. “The demand was there. We had to find a way to meet it.”

Strauss said despite that level of growth, UNC shouldn’t feel pressured to continue the trend.

“I think in some ways UNC is at a healthy size. We’re not wanting to be really a mega university, and we’ve appreciated a certain kind of campus intimacy,” he said.

“I believe that helps create a better community.”

Research growth

The need for research space is continuing to grow because winning grants depends on attracting high caliber faculty, said Andy Johns, associative vice chancellor for research.

He said this depends on providing highly specialized facilities.

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Research facilities account for about 15 percent of UNC’s overall space that is available for academic and research-based activity.

Johns said this is especially important because federal funding is at risk now that the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation might lose funds in order to cut the national deficit. About 70 percent of UNC’s research funds come from the federal government.

“That means submitting even more competitive proposals and all of that comes to recruiting and retaining really strong faculty,” Johns said.

What next?

The funds that supported UNC’s growth ran out by the end of 2010.

In 2000, North Carolina’s voters passed the Higher Education Bond, which provided $2.5 billion to the UNC system for new construction and facilities maintenance.

UNC was given $516 million, which resulted in 50 projects. The University also contributed private funds.

But University officials said there are no current plans in the legislature to create a second bond referendum, which they anticipated when planning after the 2000 referendum passed.

Erin Schuettpelz, director of state relations and communications, said the state’s debt is too large to fund construction projects through another bond referendum.

She said other traditional funding models, which include other forms of debt, are not viable.

“There would have to be available cash to construct new buildings anywhere in the state,” she said.

UNC

“It was inherently an optimistic statement, and that’s the real question. Does the state still have that optimism?”

Jonathan Howes, former faculty member and mayor of Chapel Hill, helped lead UNC’s master planning effort in the late 1990s.

“Everybody has to be optimistic about things and I am, and someday there will be another period of strong growth on campus,” he said.

“Because the University doesn’t stand still — it moves forward all the time.”

Contact the University Editor at university@dailytarheel.com.

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