[Cliffie]

1 day after announcing that they're losing about a billion dollars in endowments this year, out of a total budget of around 7 billion dollars (who knew it was that big?), UofM went ahead and decided to buy the old Pfizer lab building, which is right next to the North Campus area and thus convenient to get to. They held back on doing this for the last 2 years because they hoped a new private company of some sort would buy it, but nobody has come forward. This takes a big bite out of property-tax revenue for the area -- UofM doesn't pay taxes on its buildings -- but it also stands to create jobs.

Thye didn't mention what plans they had in mind for the building.

[Dexterguy]

I knew that they were going to buy the building 2 years ago when Pfizer decided to leave. There is no company in the United States that would buy that building, it is way to massive.

[zakian]

Originally Posted by Cliffie

1 day after announcing that they're losing about a billion dollars in endowments this year, out of a total budget of around 7 billion dollars (who knew it was that big?), UofM went ahead and decided to buy the old Pfizer lab building, which is right next to the North Campus area and thus convenient to get to. They held back on doing this for the last 2 years because they hoped a new private company of some sort would buy it, but nobody has come forward. This takes a big bite out of property-tax revenue for the area -- UofM doesn't pay taxes on its buildings -- but it also stands to create jobs.

Thye didn't mention what plans they had in mind for the building.

I use to work at U of M. Don't fool yourself, they're like any other big business. Best case scenerio, they'll create 2000 jobs in 10 years. That's only 200 a year, BEST case. And the traffic IS BAD. Ya N. campus is easy to get to but those kids have no regard for traffic. They get hit all the time. I was hit 3 times myself.

[Danielsam]

Originally Posted by Cliffie

1 day after announcing that they're losing about a billion dollars in endowments this year, out of a total budget of around 7 billion dollars (who knew it was that big?), UofM went ahead and decided to buy the old Pfizer lab building, which is right next to the North Campus area and thus convenient to get to. They held back on doing this for the last 2 years because they hoped a new private company of some sort would buy it, but nobody has come forward. This takes a big bite out of property-tax revenue for the area -- UofM doesn't pay taxes on its buildings -- but it also stands to create jobs.

Thye didn't mention what plans they had in mind for the building.

U of M simply has a more realistic, balanced, and appropriate view of their financial situation. At 7 billion dollar, their endowment is larger than 98% of all other universities. Universities 1/2 the size function perfectly well with endowments that are 10-15 times smaller. So while Harvard cries about how their endowment is now only 17 billion --- like an out of touch billionaire who laments not having enough money for a 747 --- U of M marches ahead expanding their infrastructure, creating more high paying jobs, and contributing to the local economy. Harvard just froze all hiring, U of M has not canceled a single faculty search.

As for the research park, The university said it would become research space for their health sciences and biotechnology initiative. They are on path to hire hundreds of new biomedical scientists to increase their standing in health sciences research.

:-)

[actinic]

Originally Posted by Danielsam

U of M marches ahead expanding their infrastructure, creating more high paying jobs, and contributing to the local economy. Harvard just froze all hiring, U of M has not canceled a single faculty search.

Guess I won't hold my breath hoping they'll tow the line on tuition increases, payroll freezes, or other budget cutbacks during tough recessionary times.

Their impunity in sharing in the pain and lack of accountability, along with other universities, is laughable.

[Cliffie]

Originally Posted by zakian

I use to work at U of M. Don't fool yourself, they're like any other big business. Best case scenerio, they'll create 2000 jobs in 10 years. That's only 200 a year, BEST case. And the traffic IS BAD. Ya N. campus is easy to get to but those kids have no regard for traffic. They get hit all the time. I was hit 3 times myself.

Bad traffic on North Campus? It has some of the lightest traffic in the whole city. I lived there for years and never heard of a single person getting hit on the road. They don't even get hit very much on the Main Campus where there is NO respect for 2000-lb fossil-fuel-burning vehicles.

As Confucious might say, 200 jobs a year is 200 jobs a year. I wouldn't sneeze at that. Some of them will be permanent jobs with benefits. Others will pay decently even without benefits and will serve as good resume-builders. All of them will assist the job-holders in paying their rent. I don't see a downside to that.

[Danielsam]

Originally Posted by actinic

Guess I won't hold my breath hoping they'll tow the line on tuition increases, payroll freezes, or other budget cutbacks during tough recessionary times.

Their impunity in sharing in the pain and lack of accountability, along with other universities, is laughable.

Sharing the pain? I'm sorry but your comment makes no sense.

U of M does not have an unbalanced budget that requires spending cutbacks and works completely like a business. Right now, that LAST thing Michigan needs is for businesses that are doing well (e.g., U of M) to cut their spending budgets. The LAST thing we need is for businesses to cut salaries and stop hiring people, especially highly paid researchers who bring outside grant money to the state, which create more jobs and inject capital into our economy.

Do you want to see all businesses suffer and cut their spending so that "they all share the pain?" The way businesses and universities will help the Michigan economy is by spending and expanding. NOT by having salary freezes and having budget cutbacks. That's economics 101.

We should be glad that U of M is not as greedy as Harvard and DID NOT decide to protect their own wealth by freezing their spending budgets and firing people during this difficulty financial time.

And btw, U of M is a state sponsored University, not a state supported university. This means most of U of M budget does not come from State finances and the school produces more for the State - in economic activity - than what it receives. Any state would kill to have a business like U of M come to their state to create the type and quantity of jobs U of M offers.

[actinic]

Originally Posted by Danielsam

The way businesses and universities will help the Michigan economy is by spending and expanding. NOT by having salary freezes and having budget cutbacks. That's economics 101.

Another tax & spend advocate, as if GM wasn't enough.

Try taking Real World 101.

[Cliffie]

Here's the real world as it applies to Ann Arbor: it would just be a wide place in the road if not for the UofM. It not only supports all manner of professors and teaching assistants; it also supports hundreds of support staff like secretaries and custodians, the local bookstores that sell textbooks, dozens of restaurants and other businesses that appeal to the student population, like nightclubs, record stores and vintage-clothing shops; not to mention medicine, the arts, scientific research of a hundred different kinds, the publishing industry, and luxury industries like the landscapers who replace the perennials on campus every couple of years, as if they were, well, not perennials.

I think you've got your snark on backwards, actinic. "Tax & spend" is a complaint usually applied to Democratic Federal administrations, not colleges and universities. Any elected official of any party affiliation would agree that having businesses like the UofM expand is good for the economy.

[actinic]

Originally Posted by Cliffie

Here's the real world as it applies to Ann Arbor: it would just be a wide place in the road if not for the UofM. It not only supports all manner of professors and teaching assistants; it also supports hundreds of support staff like secretaries and custodians, the local bookstores that sell textbooks, dozens of restaurants and other businesses that appeal to the student population, like nightclubs, record stores and vintage-clothing shops; not to mention medicine, the arts, scientific research of a hundred different kinds, the publishing industry, and luxury industries like the landscapers who replace the perennials on campus every couple of years, as if they were, well, not perennials.

Lol, another 'Broken Windows' fallacy.

Economics in One Lesson, The Lesson Applied, The Broken Window