Central Washington University Board of Trustees October 17, 2019 Executive Summary – Capital Update
Washington state funds major capital projects on a biennial cycle. For the 2019-21 biennium, which began on July 1, 2019, CWU’s focus is the construction of Health Sciences and supplemental capital requests. In summer 2019, CWU completed the 402-bed residence facility, Dugmore Hall, and the Northside Commons dining facility, immediately east of Dugmore. In the 2019 session of the state legislature, CWU received $5 million to design the renovation of and addition to Nicholson Pavilion, constructed in 1959 as the Physical and Health Education building. The Division of Operations has launched the renewal of the capital master plan. The process will integrate the Sightlines facilities condition data, introduce a university-wide Call for Capital, and expand the software system we use for capital planning and management. Sightlines Facilities Condition In 2017 CWU partnered with other state baccalaureates and the Council of Presidents to conduct a three-year facilities condition and benchmarking analysis. The overall intent of the study was to evaluate the current state of asset reinvestment needs, establish a facilities and operations profile, research historical funding levels, and benchmark each institution and the Washington institutions of higher education against other “systems.” The analysis will also look at the investments required to manage the backlog of asset reinvestment needs. Both state funded and auxiliary funded areas were in scope for CWU. The study found that state- and university-funded facilities are aging across CWU and the current capital programs are not keeping pace with the annual needs of these facilities. As a result, the need is growing to address deferred maintenance and to invest in asset modernization. The study also found that deferred maintenance and need to update facilities negatively impacts program quality and is draining the facilities operating budget, as well as eroding the CWU’s ability to realize its mission. The proposed solutions identified by the Sightlines study revolve around improved state biennium funding and annual support for all campuses included in the study. More specifically, the recommendation is to prioritize upcoming renewal needs through the state Minor Works / Preservation funding to maintain existing assets and prevent growth of deferred maintenance. The study recommends limiting interior updates to the relatively scarce availability of Minor Works / Program funding in order to protect limited preservation funding. Focusing on preventive maintenance limits break-and-fix spending over time. Last, the study found that allocating local funds in combination with preservation funding would provide for maximum impact. Dugmore Hall and Northside Commons Dr. Owen Dugmore Hall is CWU’s newest residential facility. The 102,560 square-foot residence hall was named in honor of Professor William “Owen” Dugmore, who taught in CWU’s Department of Psychology from 1969 to 2014. In addition to investing his time and talents at Central during his lengthy career, Dugmore designated CWU the sole beneficiary of his estate. His donation of nearly $1.2 million is the largest gift in recent university history. The $45-million, 402-bed residence hall opened fall 2019 on the
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