Dorms, FRIB, stimulus plan on trustees' docket Friday

An economic stimulus bill-related infrastructure plan, dorm upgrades and budget revision for construction at the Cyclotron are among the agenda items to be discussed at Friday’s MSU Board of Trustees meeting.

The meeting is the first of the semester and first for new Trustees Dianne Byrum and Diann Woodard. The board meets at 9:30 a.m. in 401 Administration Building.

Stimulating campus

The Trustee Finance Committee will advise the board to identify a set of infrastructure projects and begin its planning in anticipation of the proposed federal stimulus package.

Public universities with prepared construction plans are among the institutions in line to receive part of the near-$800 billion in federal funding.

Institutions with construction plans that have favorable investments, potential for job creation and sustainability will have priority for federal stimulus money. Criteria for the federal funds mandate that construction must begin within 90 days of receiving the money and be completed within two years.

“I think we want to help President Obama to put more people back to work, and I think we need to complete some construction projects that will make MSU much stronger,” MSU Trustee Faylene Owen said.

“This is a great opportunity for the university to get some big projects done and to help the economic recovery.”

Going up?

The board also will vote to proceed on a plan to replace elevators in Holmes and Wilson halls.

The two halls, built in 1965 and 1962, respectively, each have five original elevators still in use. In November 2008, the board authorized planning for the project. After consulting with faculty, staff and students who live and work in the two halls, the board will vote on whether to proceed with the construction.

If approved, construction would begin in both halls in December and be completed by December 2011.

Combined, the projects would cost about $2.8 million.

“I was in Wonders last year and Hubbard my freshman year, and definitely when you walk into (the Wilson elevators), you go ‘Wow, this seems a little old,’” civil engineering junior Tom Covington said. “They work fine, but they look a little shady. I have no problem with them, but I think it’d be nice to get new elevators.”

Making way for FRIB

Construction is already underway at MSU’s Cyclotron, with new office space being added to the facility.

However, when it was announced in December that the university was selected for the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, construction had to be modified to accommodate the project.

The board will vote on whether to increase the construction’s budget from $16 million to $18.1 million to cover the additional office space needed for FRIB. The Cyclotron also will need to modify its electrical power distribution.

“Now that the Department of Energy has selected MSU to design and establish the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, we would like to build out the top two floors of the office construction adjacent to the Cyclotron to accommodate the FRIB project team,” university spokesman Kent Cassella said.