The Maintenance Bill at University of Maryland: $620-Million

A stunning story in The Diamondback, the student newspaper at the University of Maryland at College Park, reveals that deferred maintenance at the university is estimated at $620-million. And it’s not like the university is catching up. In 2005 the cost was estimated at $500-million.

University officials said the state does not contribute enough money to cover maintenance demands.

“Garth C. Rockcastle, dean of the architecture college, described conditions in his school’s building as ‘structurally problematic,’” writes Tirza Austin. “If it weren’t for the rusting steel beams inside the pillars that support the building, the concrete walls and ceiling would likely have collapsed from erosion, he said.”

Insulation and energy systems at the University of Maryland are inadequate and, in some cases, haven’t been updated for years. (The university, incidentally, landed at No. 15 on Grist magazine’s list of greenest colleges last year, mainly for energy initiatives.)

The Diamondback relayed a compelling anecdote about the electrical system: “Ancient breakers needed to operate the lights around the campus are no longer produced by manufacturers, so university officials have to special order them at $20,000 to $30,000 per breaker…. While officials wait for the breakers’ special production, generators must be rented at $10,000 a week.”