UP.00.01
December 6, 1999

Meeting of the University Planning Council
- Urbana Campus Meeting
October 18, 1999
10:00 - 11:00 a.m.

The University Planning Council-Urbana Campus met in Swanlund Administration Building on October 18, 1999, at 10:00 a.m., with Provost Richard Herman presiding.

The first agenda item was the selection of a research park developer. A total of six proposals were received and four potential developers have made formal presentations. Discussions are currently underway and a selection should be made soon. This led to a larger discussion of the importance of information technology and biotechnology to the campus, future capital needs in these areas, and the role of the university in economic development in the state.

The issue of deferred maintenance on campus was discussed, with a strong emphasis on the need for multi-year planning and budgeting. We cannot deal with all the campus deferred maintenance in one year and a multi-year strategy needs to be developed.

The ERP and S3 initiatives were discussed briefly, particularly the status of the controversial Strategy 4 of the S3 initiative. A retreat on ERP was to have been held on October 19, 1999, and some recommendations and decisions should be expected after that time.

Finally, the issue of the increased faculty benefit proposal adopted by the Senate was discussed. Provost Herman expressed his strong opposition to the program, stating that he thought salary increases should be a higher priority than benefits.

Respectfully Submitted,

James G. Ward, Chair
Senate Committee on the Budget