Editor,
UNM has experienced unacceptable delays in the Student Union Building renovation project.
In response, we have imposed delay damages and taken other unprecedented action to get this project completed. We are committed to a first-class building for students and will not cut corners in the process. We are now projecting that the building may not be ready for occupancy until May of 2003, but we are making every effort to have it ready before then if possible.
The project began on Jan. 22, 2001. The work was commissioned because the University community had outgrown the current building and there were major problems associated with the old building's utility infrastructure. It was simply time to upgrade to keep up with the University's growth and needs.
The project was initially scheduled for completion in mid-July 2002, but because of various issues - including asbestos abatement, utility line construction and change orders - UNM extended the completion date to Oct. 17, 2002.
The contractor did not finish the building by Oct. 17. He asked for additional extensions, and UNM denied them. On Oct. 18, 2002, the University began imposing liquidated (delay) damages of $1,500 per day against the contractor, and we will continue to impose these damages until the building is complete.
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UNM deserves to have a Student Union Building of which we can all be proud. Our students, faculty, staff and visitors want a SUB where they can study, relax, socialize, have a meal, conduct a meeting, access various UNM and student government offices and be involved in the variety of activities that help make this University such a dynamic institution.
The SUB has always been one of the most important buildings on campus, and I am committed to having the renovated SUB be a facility of which we can all be proud.
Julie Weaks Gutierrez,
UNM vice president for
business and finance
