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Monday, partly cloudy and cold, chance of flur- News D|9est.2
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Classifieds.11
)ecember 11, 1989__University of Nebraska-LincolnVol. 89 No. gE
PMassengale to devote
I more time to presidency
I as search is postponed
sa Twiestmeyer
cportcr
U Interim President and UNL
Chancellor Martin Massen
gale should re-assign most of
ties as chancellor and assume
he powers and duties of the NU
ency, the NU Board of Regents
:d Saturday.
: regents voted unanimously to
the recommendation of the
il governance subcommittee
sting Massengale devote more
3 the NU presidency.
I he recommendation states that
because of a recent report which
| suggests sweeping changes in Ne
braska’s higher education system, the
I board postpone the search for a new
f NU president.
I * * Hi - " v • PH HH
'It is imperative that
every citizen and
taxpayer, faculty
person and student
in this state receive
a full and fair dis
cussion of the impli
cations and costs of
the sweeping pro
J posals in this re
[ port. ’
— Hoch
[ ff & $$$\
As a result, Masscngale likely will
serve as interim president for a longer
lime than anticipated, the rccommen
k dation states, and he should assume
all the powers and duties of the presi
dency and re-assign the majority of
his duties as UNL chancellor.
The changes in responsibility will
in no way affect Massengale’s posi
tion as chancellor, the recommenda
tion states.
Regent Don Blank of McCook,
subcommittee chairman, said an
“acting CEO” should be appointed
to take over most of Masscngale’s
chancellor duties.
This person would not be called
interim chancellor, Blank said, be
cause Massengale is still the chancel
lor. Rather, the acting chief executive
officer’s title would be something
similar to senior executive vice chan
cellor, he said.
The recommendation states that
among the significant duties Massen
galc will be asked to undertake is to
identify existing and potential dupli
cation among the three campuses and
central administration.
He also will be asked to make
changes to eliminate such duplica
tion and streamline administrative
functions at each.
These changes are expected to
result in significant savings to the
university, the recommendation
states.
Masscngalcistopresentaprelimi
nary report on his plans to address this
concern at the regents’ February
meeting.
In response, Masscngale said he
takes the recommendation seriously
and will do his best to represent the
university during this period.
Regent John Payne of Kearney
said Massengalc should gel a pay
raise immediately because he is per
forming two jobs.
Blank agreed, saying the execu
tive subcommittee should consider
what would be proper pay for Mas
sengale.
Regent Nancy Hoch ol Nebraska
City, chairman of the board, said she
supported the recommendations on
Massengale’s duties.
Although the presidential search
has been postponed, “we can’t tread
water,” Hoch said. “It’s time to get
on the course we’ve set, and part of
this effort is (to save) money and
time.”
Earlier in the meeting, Hoch pre
sented a statement to the regents
concerning the board’s position on
the LB247 report.
Because the report had been pub
lic for only 10 days, Hoch said^it
would be “premature and irrespon
sible” for the board to announce its
opinion on the report’s recommenda
tions.
Hoch said she will offer the
board’s first response to the report
Wednesday before the Legislature’s
LB247 Study Committee.
The recommendations deserve the
board’s “serious attention and care
ful consideration,” Hoch said.
“It is imperative that every citizen
and taxpayer, faculty person and stu
dent in this state receive a full and fair
discussion of the implications and
costs of the sweeping proposals in
this report,” she said.
Joe Heinzle/Daily Nebraskan
University of Nebraska Regent Robert Allen of Hastings asks a question during the
regents’ meeting Saturday at Varner Hall.
UNL construction projects
need scrutiny, regents say
I By Lisa Twiestmeyer
Staff Reporter
f ■ 1 he NU Board of Regents
I should begin a policy of
hiring “value engineers’’
to analyze the university’s con
struction projects to make sure
they are as cost efficient as pos
sible, according to some regents.
Regent Robert Allen of
Hastings introduced an emergency
resolution at Saturday’s board
meeting stating that the board
should hire value engineers on a
trial basis to evaluate four current
NU construction projects to deter
mine if money can be saved.
The projects include a four
story addition to the Eppley Can
cer Center at the University of
Nebraska Medical Center, im
provements at the University of
Nebraska Lincoln’s College of
Business Administration, im
provements on the fine arts educa
tion building at the University of
Nebraska at Omaha, and a $45 mil
lion addition to the health-care fa
cility at UNMC.
During more than two hours of
discussion on the issue, Allen ex
• 1 ^ •
pressed concern that some univer
sity construction projects in the
past were more expensive than
necessary because of unnecessary
aesthetic qualities, such as artwork
and open spaces.
An independent, objective
team of value engineers, Allen
said, could offer options in some
cases for a “more normal design”
that could save the university
money.
The board tabled Allen’s reso
lution until the January meeting.
Value engineers typically come
in to analyze construction projects
at about the time 35 percent of the
design stage is complete, said
Kenneth True of the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers in a presenta
tion to the board.
Several people expressed oppo
sition to Allen’s resolution, saying
three of the four current construc
tion projects arc significantly past
this point, and adding value engi
neering to the projects would only
delay them.
The regents also could not
agree on the form of payment for
the value engineers. Allen’s reso
lution stated that the leanl of engi
neers would be paid a percentage I
of the money they save the univer- I
sity on a project. I
If value engineers found no I
areas for savings, they would re
ceive no payment.
Several disagreed with this pro
posal, saying value engineers
should be paid a flat, up-front fee.
UNO Vice Chancellor Del
Weber said paying a third party a
percentage of the savings they
recognize would result in “a real
conflict of interest.”
A major reason for hiring value
engineers is to gel an unbiased, in
dependent opinion, Weber said. If
they are paid a percentage of sav
ings, he said, “they are no longer
disinterested.”
Regent John Payne of Kearney
also opposed paying a percentage
of savings.
Payne said that if he was a value
engineer and was paid this way, “I
could find you a lot of savings, but
you may not have much of a build
ing when you’re done.”
Regent Don Blank of McCook
said the regents would look at
See REGENTS on 6
Four students
cited for theft
of Santa, lights
From Staff Reports
Four University of Nebraska-Lin
coln students were cited for theft
after Lincoln police discovered
miscellaneous Christmas ornaments and
displays in their car.
Lt. Lee Wagner of the Lincoln Police
Department said the four students were
stopped 2 a.m. Friday at 17th and Har
• wood streets in southwest Lincoln.
Wagner said an officer stopped the
four after he noticed an electrical cord
hanging from the trunk.
- ~ See THEFT on 3
Kegents decline reconsiaerauun #
Attempt to save Woodruff building fails
By Lisa Twiestmeyer
Staff Reporter
An attempt by UNL student Regent
Bryan Hill to save from demolition a
building some say has historic value
failed at Saturday’s NU Board of Regents
meeting.
Hill made a motion last month that the board
reconsider its vote to acquire the Woodrull
property, at 10th and Q streets, and raze the
building to construct a 45-stall parking lot.
The motion failed 6-1.
Hill said an information packet on the con
dition and historical value of the Woodruff
Building was not given to the regents in ade
quate time for them to study it before last
month’s vote.
The packet contained the results of three
architecture professors’ evaluations of the
building.
Hill said the architecture professors’ find
ings indicate that more of an in-depth study
\
should be done on the building before tnc Doard
decides to demolish it.
Todd Oilmans, an architecture senator from
the Association of Students of the University of
Nebraska, told the board he is opposed to
demolishing the building because it is one of
the only architectural examples in Lincoln
from the late 19th century.
The building also could serve as an impor
tant bridge between the university and Lin
coln’s downtown district, he said.
The art, music, architecture and journalism
departments all have expressed interest in
using the building if it were renovated,
Oilmans said.
Hill said the architects’ reprt indicates that
the building meets all three of" the requirements
to be placed on the National Register of His
toric Places. It is necessary to meet only one of
the three requirements to be placed on the
register, he said.
The board should either buy the property
and pay for a more in-depth study of the prop
erty of the building, Hill said, or not buy it and
%
let a private acveioper renovate u.
Regent Don Blank of McCook said people
knew four years ago what the eventual out
come of property in the area, which is next to
the new Lied Center for Performing Arts,
would be.
Blank questioned why someone interested
in restoring the building did not do something
about it four years ago, when plans for the Lied
Center began.
Regent Nancy Hoch of Nebraska City cast
the only vote in favor of reconsidering the
Woodruff vote.
Hoch said after the meeting that she has ‘‘a
great concern” for saving buildings that have
some significant historical base.
However, she said, there was not a good
ease made on the cost of renovating the build
ing.
A review by UNL physical plant personnel
included in the information packet predicted
that renovation of the building to meet current
UNL standards would cost more than $1 mil
lion.