UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND, BALTIMORE
FY 2010 CAPITAL BUDGET TESTIMONY

David J. Ramsay, D.M., D. Phil., President

Good afternoon.  Thank you for this opportunity to discuss the Addition to Pharmacy Hall. I am pleased to report that construction of the Addition to the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy Hall is underway and scheduled to be completed during the summer of 2010.  The School of Pharmacy’s long wait for additional space has an end in sight.  Thank you for your continued commitment and support of this project.

• Pharmacy Hall Addition and Renovation $16,362,000 GO Bonds

The FY 2010 capital request totals $16,362,000 in GO Bonds for capital equipment.

We broke ground last June and, I am pleased to report, the project is on time and within budget.  The seven story building should be fully enclosed by the end of this year and completed and ready for use in August 2010.

The Pharmacy Hall Addition will result in 128,591 GSF/66,115 NASF of new space and includes three academic floors with lecture halls, teaching laboratories, a model pharmacy, student study spaces and student lounge areas.  The remaining four floors will be dedicated to research laboratories and faculty offices.   The project also includes the renovation of approximately 10,000 square feet of Pharmacy Hall space where the new Addition interfaces with the existing facility.  The result will be an integrated complex able to support the School of Pharmacy’s planned enrollment growth of 82%.

The Addition to Pharmacy Hall is on track to be a LEED Silver certified building, incorporating environmentally sensitive design and construction.   The building will utilize energy efficient equipment, wood products that are certified by the U.S. Forestry Service Council, recycled materials, lower lighting levels and natural day-lighting.

The importance of this project to the citizens of Maryland cannot be overstated.  There is a critical shortage of pharmacists in the state and the nation.  At the same time, as the population ages, the number of prescription drugs being taken by individuals is dramatically increasing.   Pharmacists are at the forefront of the management of these medications; they are the health care professionals who know best the implications of mixing various drug therapies; and so the demand for their expertise will continue to grow.  The Addition to Pharmacy Hall project will enable the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy to expeditiously address this need.

I invite you to visit the webcam at http://umbfm.umaryland.edu/webcam/pharmacyaddition.cfm to view the construction of the Addition to Pharmacy Hall.

Thank you for your continuing support of the University of Maryland, Baltimore and higher education in general.  I look forward to seeing you at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Addition to Pharmacy Hall in August 2010.