What promise

TESSA VANDERHART STAFF

Look around: most of the buildings of the U of M were built in the late ’60s and early ’70s by then-premier Duff Roblin. University College, Fletcher Argue, and the eponymous Duff Roblin psychology and zoology building — some of the nicest buildings on campus — were all part of Roblin’s vision for the university, a vision that’s remembered to this day.

Last year, the university spent $2.2 million on asbestos abatement in these buildings. While this isn’t a significant part of the university’s $583-million budget, which includes $119 million in capital investments, it is darn significant (and annoying) when the closest bathroom to the Manitoban office is out of commission for weeks on end.

Roblin boasted at the time that most of his expenditures were financed directly from the provincial budget, though he borrowed to invest in the province’s future.

Unfortunately, most buildings erected in the post-Second World War university construction boom contain asbestos as a cheap source of insulation or fire-proofing, though its pesky side-effect — lung disease — was first reported in 1898; a scientific consensus that asbestos inhalation causes cancer emerged in the 1960s. University Centre was completed in 1970.

The U of M campus is gorgeous, but there are a lot of things missing. Like the sense that the pesky details that never made it into Roblin’s plan are being accounted for these days.

The Aboriginal Students’ Centre being constructed on the Fort Garry campus is a perfect example of our university’s promise. The university hasn’t been able to get the kind of revenue flow it did for, say, the Engineering and Information Technology complex. So when projected costs went up, the square footage got slashed.

Cutting costs in the 1960s left Roblin a legacy, allright — and in the second era of the construction boom on Canadian universities, how will cutting costs on things like the Aboriginal Students’ Centre affect students 40 years from now? I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

Tessa Vanderhart is a thirdyear political studies student and the Manitoban’s copy editor.





Volume 94 Issue 11	The Official University of Manitoba Students' Newspaper Website	November 01, 2006

Home About Us Advertise Contact Staff Current Issue PDF Employment Letters to the Editor Meet the Staff Online Archives Personals Volunteer	Font Size Respond Email Print-Friendly What promise TESSA VANDERHART STAFF Look around: most of the buildings of the U of M were built in the late ’60s and early ’70s by then-premier Duff Roblin. University College, Fletcher Argue, and the eponymous Duff Roblin psychology and zoology building — some of the nicest buildings on campus — were all part of Roblin’s vision for the university, a vision that’s remembered to this day. Last year, the university spent $2.2 million on asbestos abatement in these buildings. While this isn’t a significant part of the university’s $583-million budget, which includes $119 million in capital investments, it is darn significant (and annoying) when the closest bathroom to the Manitoban office is out of commission for weeks on end. Roblin boasted at the time that most of his expenditures were financed directly from the provincial budget, though he borrowed to invest in the province’s future. Unfortunately, most buildings erected in the post-Second World War university construction boom contain asbestos as a cheap source of insulation or fire-proofing, though its pesky side-effect — lung disease — was first reported in 1898; a scientific consensus that asbestos inhalation causes cancer emerged in the 1960s. University Centre was completed in 1970. The U of M campus is gorgeous, but there are a lot of things missing. Like the sense that the pesky details that never made it into Roblin’s plan are being accounted for these days. The Aboriginal Students’ Centre being constructed on the Fort Garry campus is a perfect example of our university’s promise. The university hasn’t been able to get the kind of revenue flow it did for, say, the Engineering and Information Technology complex. So when projected costs went up, the square footage got slashed. Cutting costs in the 1960s left Roblin a legacy, allright — and in the second era of the construction boom on Canadian universities, how will cutting costs on things like the Aboriginal Students’ Centre affect students 40 years from now? I guess we’ll have to wait and see. Tessa Vanderhart is a thirdyear political studies student and the Manitoban’s copy editor.


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