STRENGTHENING UNIVERSITY PROPERTY OVERSIGHT

STRENGTHENING UNIVERSITY PROPERTY OVERSIGHT

With development activity on university owned property expanding, a new University Property Oversight Subcommittee was formed to oversee and refine the board’s role as fiduciary for property assets. The subcommittee is charged with policy reform of university property management for Arizona’s public university system, as well as long-term strategies and oversight.

Development of university owned land represents an increasingly critical component in advancing academic missions of the universities and a diversified revenue stream as the institutions seek entrepreneurial ways to fund the universities in an era of reduced state investment. Reviewing existing policies in areas such as long-term planning, transaction approvals and land acquisitions through gifts or purchases are among the subcommittee’s areas of focus.

The impetus for the establishment of the subcommittee stems from ABOR policies that provide a clear and robust protocol for reviewing and approving on-campus land development related to academic, research and other core university activities, yet policy does not fully address off-campus development or private on-campus development. A deep review by the subcommittee of policies and development of a policy to account for increased reporting, documentation, review and oversight of real estate development will ensure best practices as the university enterprise continues to grow.