UB Foundation Housing

The University at Buffalo Foundation (UBF) is a private nonprofit entity that manages UB's endowment and assets and plays a significant role in owning and financing student housing facilities at UB. Notably, UBF (through its affiliates) owns several on-campus residential complexes, including Greiner Hall and all of UB's apartments on North Campus. The ownership arrangement has important implications for how these living spaces are built, how they are paid for, and impacts on transparency and accountability.

Reasoning and Ownership Structure

UBF's involvement in campus housing began in the late 1990s as UB's enrollment grew and demand for modern housing exceeded what SUNY could quickly fund. UBF created a subsidiary, the UBF Faculty-Student Housing Corp, to finance, construct, and own new dorms on behalf of the university. Projects undertaken via UBF include all five apartment villages and one dorm opened since 1998 - Flickinger Court (graduate student apartments, 1998), Hadley Village (undergraduate apartments, 1999), South Lake Village (2000), Flint Village (2001), Creekside Village (2022), and Greiner Hall (2011). UBF owns these facilities outright and leases them to Campus Living for student use. Older residence halls (including those in Ellicott, Governors, and South Campus, mostly built in the 1970s) were funded by New York State and are not owned by UBF.

The use of UBF for housing allowed UB to "respond quickly to changing needs" without waiting for slow state capital budget processes. UBF finances construction via tax-exempt bonds and private funding, bypassing state debt limits. As UBF itself describes, these projects were done with "flexible financing" and have maintained near 100% occupancy, generating revenue to pay off the bonds. Importantly, no taxpayer or tuition dollars directly financed Greiner Hall or the apartment villages.

Impact on Student Rent and Services

UBF-owned housing is operated by UB's Campus Living and generally integrated with other dorms. Students apply and pay rent through the university. Apartment rates vary but are in line with on-campus housing averages. All utilities and internet are included. However, because UBF is a private entity, the exact breakdown of housing finances is not publicly disclosed, which has raised some questions.

One notable implication of UBF ownership is agility in improvements. UBF can undertake renovations or new construction faster than the state. For instance, when UB decided to add amenities like solar panels or make Greiner hall LEED Gold certified, UBF managed those enhancements directly.

Transparency and Controversies

The UB Foundation's role in housing has periodically come under question by students and faculty, mainly around transparency and accountability. As a private nonprofit, UBF is not subject to New York State's Freedom of Information Law (FOIL), and it has "long resisted attempts to increase transparency of its operations," according to an article from The Spectrum. This means details about housing finances - for example, the exact revenue from student rents, expenses, or contract details with construction firms - are not publicly available in the way student-run dorm finances might be. In 2014, UB's Faculty Senate and others called for UBF to open its books, but UBF's position is that it's legally separate from UB and thus exempt. This has led to criticism that decisions affecting student costs are being made "behind closed doors."

During budget cut discussions in 2023, some pointed out that while academics were facing cuts, UBF had significant financial outlays on other things, such as paying "~$30 million in salary in 2022, and $5 million in travel expenses" for foundation staff and projects. Such figures, critics argue, suggest money could be reprioritized to reduce student costs or fund academics, if only there were more transparency in how UBF allocates funds.

Another point of contention is that UBF's private status can shield it from public procurement rules. For example, if UB wants to build a new dorm via UBF, it doesn't have to follow all state contracting regulations, which saves time but raises questions of oversight. UBF contends that its involvement "saved UB millions of dollars" by enabling favorable financing and timely completion of projects.

In recent student discussions, many students are surprised to learn that Greiner Hall and the apartments are technically owned by a foundation, not UB. However, the rents are approved by UB's Council and are similar to SUNY dorm rates - UBF's real estate arm is a not-for-profit operation, meaning that any surplus must support the university.