University of Oregon Pursues Plan to Purchase Building It Leases Downtown
Posted on: Friday, 30 December 2005, 21:00 CST
By Greg Bolt, The Register-Guard, Eugene, Ore.
Dec. 30--The University of Oregon is seeking state permission to purchase the former Register-Guard building in downtown Eugene for $4.6 million.
The university leases the building, which houses the continuing education program and the campus printing and mailing operation. Money to purchase the property would come from state bonds repaid with university revenue.
The purchase plan will be presented to the state Board of Higher Education at its meeting next Friday in Portland. The board will be asked to approve a request to seek bond authority from the Legislative Emergency Board.
Now known as the Baker Downtown Center, the property has three buildings under one roof fronting High Street from 10th Avenue to East Broadway. The buildings have 88,500 square feet of floor space and the parcel includes 110 parking spaces.
The UO has leased at least part of the property from Guard Publishing Co. since 1995, moving in after The Register-Guard moved its printing operation to a new building on Chad Drive. The newspaper's offices moved to the Chad site in 1998, and the university soon began using the entire High Street building. The university learned earlier this year that the company was interested in selling the property and was willing to give the UO first right of refusal.
According to a brief report in the higher education board's agenda packet, closing is planned for July 1.
Debt service on the bonds is estimated at $372,000 a year. Frances Dyke, the UO's vice president for finance and administration, said that's only about $15,000 a year more than what the university spends now on lease payments.
Money for the payments comes from the overhead and administration charges paid to the UO by the departments housed in the building.
The UO planned to purchase the property eventually and included it on a list of things it might do with the proceeds from the proposed sale of its Westmoreland student housing complex. The purchase wasn't on the list of bond projects approved by the Legislature for the 2005-07 biennium, but the E-Board can reallocate bond proceeds under the current authorization, the report said.
Once closing costs are included, the UO will ask for $4.7 million in state bonds for the purchase. Two appraisers will evaluate and inspect the property before the sale is submitted for approval.
-----
To see more of The Register-Guard, Eugene, Ore., or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.registerguard.com.
Copyright (c) 2005, The Register-Guard, Eugene, Ore.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.
For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800) 661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail reprints@krtinfo.com.
Source: The Register Guard
Related Articles
- 'The Universal Properties of Acceleration': Acceleration and Inertia Are the Same Everywhere
- Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Co. Increases Business Continuity Coverage at 1Vault Networks
- King Penguin Properties, LLC Purchases Retail Commercial Building in Williamsport, PA
- Universal Property Development Management Update
- New Research Update on Universal Property Development and Acquisition Corp. Issued By Beacon Equity Research
- Universal Property Development & Acquisition Target Report Issued By Investrend Research Analyst Daniel Capo, CFA
- Windrose Medical Properties Trust Acquires Medical Office Building for $5.5 Million
- Universal Property Initiates Funding, Continues Restructuring
- China to Build First State Aviation High-Tech Base
- WebEx Founder Invited to Join the University of California President's Board on Science and Innovation
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds