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Facilities Services focuses on growth in reorganization


Nancy D. Suttenfield has announced a realignment of managerial duties within Facilities Services and elsewhere, including a change designed to free Bruce Runberg to concentrate his full attention on the implementation of the campus's 10-year development plan.

Suttenfield, vice chancellor for finance and administration, announced the reorganization and the rationale behind it in a July 16 memorandum. The reorganization will take effect Aug. 1.

Many of the changes relate to the work that lies ahead in moving forward with the new master plan for campus and the $1 billion of construction that is planned over the next decade.

On July 2, the Chapel Hill Town Council agreed to rezone the main campus. Suttenfield and other University officials are now engaged in an intensive town review of the University's development plan.

In October, the town is scheduled to vote on the plan, and its approval would clear the regulatory path to allow the University to implement a facilities expansion that will add 5.9 million square feet to the current 14 million square feet.

Once that happens, attention must focus on overseeing construction and this shuffling of responsibilities within Facilities Services is aimed at making that possible, Suttenfield said.

"Under the best of circumstances, an expansion of this magnitude and complexity is an enormous challenge," Suttenfield said. "With resource constraints and the high visibility of this expansion as additional factors, we have a special duty to assure that all construction is carried out in the most orderly and responsible manner possible."

Beginning Aug. 1, Runberg will devote his time exclusively to the execution of the development plan and property acquisition. Runberg will also be responsible for communications to include the campus and surrounding neighborhoods as well as with the Town of Chapel Hill, the Office of the President of the UNC system and state construction officials.

Runberg's title will be changed from associate vice chancellor for facilities services to associate vice chancellor for facilities planning and construction.

Anna Wu, who has been serving as an interim replacement for Gordon Rutherford, has been appointed to succeed Rutherford as director of facilities planning. Wu will work with campus clients, architects and others to program and design new and expanded facilities as well as the major facilities renewal and infrastructure projects that are part of the development plan, Suttenfield said.

Suttenfield said the University is in the process of filling a new position of "campus historic preservation manager." The person hired to fill it will advise and assist in the planning and design of projects involving historic buildings and areas of the Carolina campus, Suttenfield said.

Suttenfield said other management responsibilities that Runberg has been doing will be reassigned to Carolyn Elfland, associate vice chancellor for auxiliary services.

Those other responsibilities include minor repairs and renovations, plant and grounds maintenance, housekeeping, utility management, and mail services.

"Over time, this change will allow us to manage Facilities Services in a manner that exemplifies best practices from both a customer service and resource management perspective," Suttenfield said. "It will also integrate these operations with other related services, including environmental, safety, transportation, parking, police and security services.

"Through more integrated, better coordinated service delivery, our goal is to provide more timely, cost-effective, and responsive support to the campus as it grows and places new service demands on limited resources."

Elfland's new title will be associate vice chancellor for campus services.

At the same time, Elfland will no longer be in charge of purchasing and material management, Suttenfield said.

"I have reassigned these business functions from Carolyn to Roger Patterson, associate vice chancellor for finance," Suttenfield said.

Suttenfield said the change will unify the process of buying, receiving and paying for goods and services. These changes will also be effective Aug. 1.

Finally, Suttenfield announced that Bob Knight had joined her office as assistant vice chancellor for finance and administration. Knight held previous finance positions at Case Western Reserve University and Oberlin College.

"Bob's role will be to undertake special study projects aimed at improving the effectiveness of central administration," Suttenfield said.

These projects would include such things as streamlining the payroll and pre- and post-award grant processes and advancing other initiatives such as employer-employee housing, returning property to local tax base and negotiating a new municipal transit agreement.


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