OSCA to eliminate position

Committee decides not to renew facilities manager's contract

Many co-opers are not feeling very cooperative about the recent decision made by the OSCA board.

OSCA's president, treasurer, secretary and finance manager - all members of the Personnel Committee (PerCo) - voted not to renew the paid position of Facilities Manager, currently occupied by Michael Stewart. The PerCo committee has spent weeks compiling explanations for their action, but some still find the decision unacceptable.

The Facilities Manager position is the result of a proposal that was written in 1995 to create a position that would aide OSCA in repairing 10 years' worth of deferred maintenance for the two off-campus houses in OSCA's possession, Fuller and Langston-Bliss. The proposal predicted that the deferred maintenance could be corrected in a time period of three years, and outlined a paid position of a new employee who would be in charge of directing the maintenance.

At the end of the three-year period, according to the proposal, a Personnel Committee (PerCo) would meet to discuss the progress made on the repairs. If the maintenance had not been completed, the committee was charged with writing a proposal to continue the maintenance, or selling the houses to someone who would be able to take care of them.

The end of that three-year time came around this year, and the personnel group did in fact meet to discuss the decisions appointed to them. Their decision was not to write a proposal requesting the renewal of the Facilities Manager position. According to OSCA Treasurer sophomore Graf Douglas, "We could not find a justifiable reason to continue the position."

The houses which the Facilities Manager was hired to repair are Fuller and Langston Bliss, two off-campus homes purchased by OSCA in 1985 and 1986 respectively, which house a total of 13 people. These properties were originally managed solely by students in OSCA, who ran into many problems dealing with contractors hired to repair the homes. The students reported a general lack of respect from the contractors, and their lack of experience often led to the contractors being able to take advantage of OSCA. These concerns are what led to the hiring of the Facilities Manager.

According to this week's board report, the decision to not renew the position is mainly based on the fact that the maintenance on Langston-Bliss and Fuller had been completed as projected, thus there was no longer a need for a professional to oversee the repairs. Secondly, OSCA became aware that paying for the Facilities Manager position was causing a major drain on the capital of OSCA.

Each student in OSCA currently pays $78 dollars per year for the off campus houses. The large majority of this money goes to pay for the facilities manager position, and the rest goes toward house renovations and a fund to replace or building new houses to replace old ones, which are projected to be unsuitable to live in after 40 years.

Once the OSCA treasurers realized what they felt was a money drain caused by the facilities manager position, it was requested OSCA take measures to correct the problem. The Board release stated that comparisons with other student co-ops supported this position.

According to financial projections, cutting out the Facilities Manager position will reduce the expenses of each OSCA member by $74 per person per year. Douglas stated that this savings may not be important to everyone, but that it is important to some students.

Also instrumental to PerCo's decision is the fact that there is the possibility of the sale of Langston Bliss house. The mission statement of OSCA does not include the renovation of historical houses such as Bliss, and paying to repairs or the renovations could range in the hundred thousands. Douglas stated that both houses will be owned by OSCA for the next academic year, but that President Dye wants to talk to OSCA about buying Bliss house in the future. "The most respective thing for the community would be to pass it n to someone who is equipped to deal with it in a manner befitting its status," he said.

Many residents of OSCA are unhappy with the decision, and a proposal has been written by two students to renew the position. Many were well acquainted with Stewart, and feel that a personal blow has been inflicted upon them. Douglas stated that the decision had nothing to do with Stewart himself. "Mike has done a very good job and he has really stepped outside his position to make OSCA as good as possible," he stated.

If the proposal to renew the position passes and Stewart agrees to accept, the position of facilities manager will be reinvoked for another three years, at the end of which the position will be evaluated again. If the position is not reinstated, the responsibilities of facilities manager will be handed to a student who has worked closely with the facilities manager in the past two-and-a-half years.