To: President E. Gordon Gee, OSU President and Mr. Bob Schottenstein, Chair, OSU Board of Trustees
Don't sell our Ohio State University
1. Parking is essential to the university mission.
2. Investors will be able to depreciate buildings they did not pay for--Ohio taxpayers paid for them and OSU must continue to pay for the loans.
3. The garages' value is at least $600 million, and OSU would need to receive $800 million to a billion dollars to break even over 50 years.
4. Parking is one of the best-run units at OSU, and its employees would not be as well-paid with a lessee.
5. Parking pays a $1.7 million "tax" per year and completely subsidizes traffic signals, etc., with another $17 million per year. This is essentially the amount that the endowment provides on $375 million. There is no net benefit to monetizing parking.
2. Investors will be able to depreciate buildings they did not pay for--Ohio taxpayers paid for them and OSU must continue to pay for the loans.
3. The garages' value is at least $600 million, and OSU would need to receive $800 million to a billion dollars to break even over 50 years.
4. Parking is one of the best-run units at OSU, and its employees would not be as well-paid with a lessee.
5. Parking pays a $1.7 million "tax" per year and completely subsidizes traffic signals, etc., with another $17 million per year. This is essentially the amount that the endowment provides on $375 million. There is no net benefit to monetizing parking.
Why is this important?
OSU is currently receiving bids to lease the parking operation for the next 50 years for $375 million. The operation currently puts $1.7 million per year into the core, runs the bus service, traffic, etc., and is one of the best-run parts of OSU. The university would lose money long-term and enrich private individuals at taxpayer expense.