Officials to seek funds for facilities

Administrators don't know how much the buildings will cost, but are looking into options fo financing the plan. Administrators say they have not yet determined a price tag for the facilities proposals University President Judith Rodin unveiled last week at University Council. But officials are already in the process of discussing how to finance the construction and renovations. Rodin's master facilities plan includes the creation of "Sansom Commons" -- an urban park with a hotel and retail space on the 3600 and 3700 blocks of Sansom Street. The plan also details the construction of new dormitories and academic buildings. Philadelphia architects said some parts of the plan, if implemented together, could cost more than $45 million. But Executive Vice President John Fry said two of the three main projects -- Sansom Commons and new residences -- will partially pay for themselves. And he said the University will solicit donations to fund the construction of new academic facilities. The University will look to private investments to fund the construction of retail space in Sansom Commons. Hotel operators will bid for the Penn Inn, which the University hopes to build on the parking lot at 36th and Walnut streets, next to the future Barnes & Noble bookstore. In building and renovating residences, room fees paid by students who live in existing dormitories will generate a certain amount of usable income, Fry said, adding that the University could also take money from its "cash pool" to fund the construction of new residences. If the University demolished the high rises, as discussed last week, it would cost several million dollars per building, according to Philadelphia architect Eric Daubert, who said he couldn't give a specific dollar figure. And building a hotel like the Penn Inn could cost about $45 million, he said. But Daubert, who works for Philadelphia-based Arris Architects, added that even the roughest cost estimated require actual designs. Kevin McGee of McGee Co., a Philadelphia-based cost-analysis firm, said no one can estimate the new projects' price until they are designed. The University has consulted McGee Co. for past projects and McGee said he was minimally involved with preliminary discussions of the development of Sansom Commons. Penn's Board of Trustees Vice Chairperson Gloria Chisum said she expects the administration to brief the Trustees on the new projects at a closed meeting of the Trustees' Executive Committee this Friday. Chisum said administrators have not specifically asked Trustees to donate money for the facilities projects. But Vice President for Development Virginia Clark said she has begun talks with alumni and Trustees about donating money for Rodin's many strategic plans, although she does not have a specific goal amount. "We really haven't gotten to that point where we can come up with specific numbers," Clark said, adding that the donations will be earmarked for academic programs and facilities. Fry said he doesn't want to use alumni donations or the cash pool to fund retail and residential projects. "I don't want to take fundraising dollars away from an academic program," Fry said. The University is currently planning a large fundraising drive for all of the strategic plans that fall under the Agenda for Excellence. When the University undertakes a drive like the $1.4 billion Campaign for Penn in 1994, the schools each have their own fundraising goals, while the University as a whole has its own monetary target, Clark said. The University does not establish a specific percentage of the total funds that the schools must contribute, Clark added. Fry said the University will help each school pay for renovation and construction fees initially. After the schools solicit donations from alumni and raise the necessary funds, they will pay the University back. Wharton School of Business administrators have completed an analysis of the amount of space the school will need for its new building at The Book Store site, Fry said. They will now meet with other University officials and architects to design the new complex, which will be built at 38th Street and Locust Walk, Fry added.

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