1729 MacVicar - Washburn Endowment Association (WEA)
The Project - New WEA Office Space
In less than 10 years, the Bradbury Thompson Center, designed to serve the needs of the alumni and Washburn University, is insufficient to meet the needs of the current 27 full-time WEA employees. While the $2.5 million Bradbury Thompson Center was funded from private sources, the new $2.0 million renovation of 1729 SW MacVicar will be funded from university reserves.
It is interesting to note that, in 1996, a smaller WEA organization could raise $2.5 million in private funds for the Bradbury Thompson Center, but this newer, bigger WEA organization cannot raise any funds for its new office space.
The Budget - Not to Exceed $2.0 Million
The total project was approved by the Washburn University Board of Regents in July, 2003 with a not-to-exceed amount of $2.0 million, funded from University reserves. In addition to the $235,625 purchase price, the projected construction costs grew from $1.3 million to $1.6 million when the $1,546,000 construction contract was awarded to D.F. Osborne Construction in January, 2006. Although approved unanimously, various Board members felt compelled to go on record warning the administration to watch this project very carefully since a renovation (as opposed to new construction) is the worst kind of project and the change orders must be watched very carefully.
Although the total project costs were not addressed by the Board at their January, 2006 meeting, based on the awarded contract and the November 2005 agenda item for this project, it would appear that the total budgeted project costs have already exceeded the $2.0 million limit.
BUDGET
$1,546,000 Construction costs
334,600 Soft Costs, IT, Construction Contingency
235,625 1729 SW MacVicar property purchase ($165,100 appraised value)
27,500 Reroute sewer line
123,680 8% architect & engineering fees
$2,267,405 Total Budgeted Project Costs
Actual Expenditures
Expenditures for this project were first recorded during FY05 in the Building and Construction Fund. The administration assured the Board that they would keep a very careful eye on the project expenditures, given the concerns expressed by various Board members regarding the nature of this project being a renovation rather than new construction.
A list of expenditures, compared to budget illustrates how well the administration did with finishing this project within its $2.0 million budget.
During FY05, the University transferred $1.3 million of reserves to provide funding and $249,807.06 was charged to this project. In addition to the land purchase of $234,060, professional fees of $15,687 have also been paid.
On May 12, 2006, the Board of Regents approved an expenditure of $76,625 for the design and installation of the fire alarm system at 1729 SW MacVicar and a contract for $56,000 with Torgeson Electric to provide the new WEA office space with an underground connection to the campus telecom system.
Most recently, on March 16, 2007, the Board of Regents approved a change order of $38,229 for DF Osborne Construction for removal and replacement of the brick on the existing house to match the addition.