Only one developer, Heritage Properties, responded to Towson's spring request for an off-campus housing development, and the University deemed that proposal "unacceptable" in July.
"We did not accept any of the proposals, and therefore the RFP dies," interim vice president for administration and finance Alan Leberknight said.
In April, Towson released Request for Proposals 0542, "Student Housing," for 400 to 600 beds within one mile of campus. Some community groups were strongly opposed to the RFP, and several state lawmakers launched unsuccessful attempts to delay or derail the process.
Leberknight said rejecting the proposal was a clear-cut business decision, and said it "had nothing to do with who was for or against it."
The sole proposal included three different scenarios, but they "were not acceptable to us because of the impact they had on the debt capacity of the University System of Maryland," he said. Heritage had hoped to build student housing as part of Towson Circle III, a proposed retail site in downtown Towson.
But rejecting the housing proposal doesn't eliminate the long-term need for additional beds for Towson students.
"Obviously we're still in a situation where there's a need for housing," Leberknight said.
With the Towson Circle project, the University's goal was to have new rooms for residents by the fall of 2008.
"We're still looking at how to do that," Towson President Robert Caret said this week. In the coming years, the University may construct a new residence hall, partner with a private developer, or lease nearby apartment buildings.
At a community meeting on May 12, University spokesperson Susanna Craine was asked why Towson intended to lease housing off-campus, rather than build residence halls on campus. "Opportunity knocked," she said. "We're going to need more and more housing. The growth cycle is upon us."
Baltimore County revitalization director Andrea Van Arsdale told attendees that Towson University, Baltimore County, and Heritage Properties had been in discussions about placing student housing on the Towson Circle III site last year.
"We thought it was going to go there," she said.
But the situation changed last winter when the University System of Maryland Board of Regents required Towson to put the plan through an RFP process, so any developer could submit a proposal for housing.
Upon hearing this, some local residents alleged that Heritage Properties had an unfair advantage in the RFP process. A few days after the community meeting, Del. John Trueschler (R-Balt.) and Sen. Jim Brochin (D-Balt.) filed letters with the state Attorney General's office, raising questions about the legitimacy of the RFP process.
Towson University and Baltimore County had "initially considered entering into a non-competitive project with a developer," Attorney General Joseph Curran confirmed after an informal review of the situation a week later. He concluded that no aspect of the RFP "would tend to favor a particular offeror."
Towson "looking at all options" for housing
Of course, at the time, no one -- except the University's two RFP review committees -- knew the issue was moot.
Observers, including Van Arsdale and county executive Jim Smith, previously speculated that five or six sites are appropriate locations for the project, so Towson's announcement that only one developer had bid came as a surprise (and a relief) to some community members.
"We are all thrilled that it seems there won't be dorms at the Towson Circle III site," Greater Towson Council of Community Associations president Judy Gregory said, speaking on behalf of the group. By Fall 2008, Towson expects to enroll 19,000 students. Some of those additional students will need a place to live, and the University is "looking at all options," Caret said.
For decades, Towson built housing on campus in a "traditional" manner. It secured funding from the state of Maryland and commenced construction. But it is becoming increasingly difficult to secure funding for housing projects.
In 2000, the University took a different approach, by collaborating with Capstone Management on Millennium Hall. The residence hall is "privatized housing" -- it was built on University property but Capstone is responsible for all aspects of the property, including leasing, residence life and facility maintenance.
When Millennium was built, Towson had tentative plans to build a similar residence hall next to it, but the plans were shelved when University Village was approved.
One of the private developer alternatives "is to do what we did with Millennium and lease them the land and let them develop and operate with us," Caret said.
He said the University is "talking to lots of people," and predicted that the University would continue to consider off-campus housing options. Another option is a short-term lease of one or more apartment buildings. A Request For Proposals would be released to solicit the lease options. When Caret was president of San Jose State University, a Request For Proposals was issued to solicit lease options near the California campus. SJSU provided a shuttle service to and from the apartment complex.
Owners of several nearby properties have expressed interest in a similar arrangement with TU, Caret said, but the arrangement would only be acceptable for "short term needs in emergency situations."
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