Western Washington University’s Board of Trustees approved the sale of six properties as part of a strategy to address next year’s anticipated budget deficit.
Western’s recurring revenues will fall $20.5 million under the university’s recurring expenditures, prompting the university to undertake reductions, sell properties and pull $3.7 million from reserves to cover the difference, university administrators announced at the June 14 Board of Trustees meeting. Some one-time funding from the Legislature will also help.
Enrollment is the main culprit for the ongoing budgetary challenges. COVID-19’s impact on enrollment will take Western “years to fully surmount,” according to a Board of Trustees document. With FAFSA issues this year, administrators have concerns about next year’s enrollment as well.
Faye Gallant, the assistant vice president for strategy, management and budget, said at the June 14 meeting that next year’s budget will still fully fund instruction and fulfill commitments on compensation increases.
One-time strategies to fill the gap between revenues and expenditures include extending salary recaps on vacated positions to six months, allowing for optional, voluntary contract reductions/furloughs and the sale of property, Gallant said at the meeting.
Gallant said the reductions and furloughs will only happen in cases where employees initiate and supervisors agree. “We’re not pressuring employees in any way but we have had some folks already indicate interest,” she said.
Sale of six properties
Three of the six properties approved for sale are residential units, located at 404 20th St., 408 20th St. and 914 23rd St. in Bellingham. The appraised value for the three properties is $471,634, $468,185 and $1.1 million, respectively, according to the Whatcom County Assessor and Treasurer. The last property in Bellingham is a vacant lot, located at 900 25th Street, Director of Communication Jonathan Higgins said, appraised at $399,024.
The remaining two properties are not in Whatcom County. One is a waterfront property at 1725 Yacht Haven Road on San Juan Island. It’s a property the university currently does not use, and its assessed value is currently zero dollars due to it being a state university owned parcel, according to the San Juan County Assessor. However, neighboring properties are appraised at over $1 million. Proceeds will be used to establish an endowment for Marine Center operations, according to Board documents.
On Sinclair Island, the university intends to sell off its property at 2225 Leadbetter Place, also known as ViQueen Lodge. It’s appraised at $334,300, and proceeds will go to establish an endowment for student clubs, but Higgins said he didn’t have details on what that endowment would look like.
Trustee John M. Meyer said at the June 14 meeting he was concerned about the “precedent of selling assets and then putting that into operations.”
President Sabah Randhawa said the properties would have likely been sold anyway.
“The intent is to move it in a direction where the university can use it in a meaningful way while in the short term to hold it to balance the books, but your point is very well taken,” he said.
A petition in February cautioned the Board of Trustees against approving the sale of the Sinclair Island property due to its ongoing use by Western’s Outdoor Recreation Center.
“This lodge is not just a building; it’s a part of our community history. It has been serving students for almost a century, offering them an escape from the everyday hustle of student life into nature’s embrace,” the petition read.
“We believe that preserving this historical site will not only honor our past but also enrich future generations’ experiences at WWU. We urge WWU to consider alternatives to any plans that might lead to losing this precious piece of history.” The Outdoor Center did not immediately reply to requests for comment on the sale of the building.
WWU plans to ask state for help with operational budget
In August, the Board of Trustees will vote on an operational budget request for the Legislature in the next session, which will ask for “more robust state funding” for the core operational budget, Gallant said.
“At the moment, our FTE funding is lower than community and technical colleges,” Randhawa said.
There has been legislative support for student employees and interest in fully funding cost of living increases, Chief of Staff in the President’s Office Becca Kenna-Schenk said at the meeting. This year, the state-funded 70% of the cost-of-living wage increases.
“Hopefully we can really align all those points in a compelling way coupled with Western’s unique situation in terms of being the lowest public institution on a per-student funding basis to make the case for increased support,” Kenna-Schenk said.
A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the assessed value of the San Juan Island property due to incorrect data from the County Assessor’s office. This story was updated to reflect this change on Thursday, June 27 at 9:12 a.m. Cascadia Daily News regrets this error.
Charlotte Alden is CDN’s general assignment/enterprise reporter; reach her at charlottealden@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 123.
