Through legislative stalemate in the state capital, UMD’s planned expansion of the chemistry department has been put on hold.
Last spring spring UMD unveiled plans for the construction of a new Chemistry and Advanced Material Sciences (CAMS) building, which was slated to begin this past summer.
The reason for the expansion is that chemistry classes are at maximum capacity, and the 68-year-old building that houses the chemistry department is unable to support the growing field of students and technology needed, according to The University of Minnesota’s Goverment Relations page.
To fund construction, UMD had requested more than $21 million from the nearly $1 billion bonding bill (a funding plan for state projects) put before the state government.
The bonding bill proved difficult for the house, senate and governor to agree on and was ultimately shelved.
“They continued to negotiate,” said J.D. Burton, Interim Special Assistant to the President for UMN’s Government and Community Relations. “In the end they just couldn’t agree.”
While hopes had recently been high for a special legislative session as recently as a week ago, negotiations have now been suspended.
In a letter to House Speaker Kurt Daudt, Governor Mark Dayton wrote:
“Given the facts that these negotiations have taken place over the past four months without reconciliation, and that only 46 days now remain until the upcoming election, I have reluctantly concluded that the time for agreement on a Special Session has expired.”
