Build convention center in $326 million plan at Indian River State College? Talk publicly

In May, the TCPalm Editorial Board expressed concerns about secrecy surrounding an "unsolicited" proposal Indian River State College received for a major development project on its Fort Pierce campus.

We have since learned a bit more about that proposal. As TCPalm columnist Blake Fontenay wrote in August, CGHP Developments, a Boca Raton-based consortium, wants to erect about $326 million in buildings, including a convention center, a hotel, a museum and a restaurant on college property.

The plans also include student housing, classrooms and parking, but the way the phases for them were suggested, the hospitality-related facilities seem like the centerpiece of the project.

Edifice complex? A convention center, hotel and museum at Indian River State College? Why do we need this?

Last we heard, William Ward, the college's associate vice president of capital planning, was still reviewing the plans. Presumably, unless he or another college administrator see a reason to kill them outright, they'll probably be forwarded to IRSC's board of trustees for review.

The sooner the board review of the plans commences, the better.

It doesn't appear that discussion will take place at the board's Oct. 26 meeting, based on the published agenda. It still could be added to the agenda.

Until the board makes a decision about these plans, or until the school publicly announces the plans have been scuttled, taxpayers and other IRSC stakeholders must assume the plans are still under consideration.

Why they'd even be under consideration is a fair question. Sure, some large universities have on-campus facilities similar to those proposed at IRSC. But IRSC isn't the University of Central Florida or even Florida Atlantic.

IRSC's campus location seems ill-suited to host major events, particularly since there's no commercial air service available in St. Lucie County. Maybe that will change when Treasure Coast International Airport gets federal approval to start commercial flights and finds an airline.

Even if that happens, there aren't many restaurants, shops or attractions near the Fort Pierce campus that would make it an attractive destination in Florida's highly competitive convention market.

The links between these plans and IRSC's educational mission seem tenuous at best. Could IRSC hospitality students land internships or jobs working at the convention center, hotel or restaurant? Sure.

They could get those same types of experiences at numerous hotels or other tourist-oriented facilities along the Treasure Coast. There's no need to gobble up a substantial amount of taxpayer-owned land on campus just to create jobs that can already be found elsewhere.

As for the museum, would it be devoted to some area that complements one or more IRSC academic programs? Like convention centers, there are museums ― many of them strapped for cash — scattered all over Florida. If this one doesn't have a niche and boffo exhibits, it will struggle.

Even if the developers were to assume all the risk for operating these non-academic facilities, or hire third-party vendors to manage them, what would happen if these risky business enterprises went belly-up? Campus officials would be faced with either repurposing or demolishing buildings that probably should have never been built in the first place.

It may well be there are academic programs in need of more classroom space. Maybe there's a need for more student housing and parking, too.

However, it seems like a totally backward process to accept a development proposal calling for more classroom space, then trying to figure out how to use that space.

Perhaps IRSC President Timothy Moore has some grand vision for expanding the school's footprint and mission. Some of the moves he's made since he took over the job a little more than three years ago suggest he does have big ideas for IRSC's future.

He's overseen the expansion of IRSC's nursing program, which includes the offering of four-year degrees; he's hoping to develop a data center in Okeechobee County; he's entered a partnership for Indiantown High School to operate as a college-supported charter school; and he's even let comments slip about having a private group operate a medical school on one of the campuses.

If Moore has a vision for expanding IRSC's spheres of influence, he ought to articulate that clearly and publicly as part of a long-range plan.

Indefinitely shelving these development plans until some point in the future (when public attention might be diverted elsewhere, maybe?) is neither responsible nor fair to the people keeping IRSC afloat financially.

Either publicly scrap the plans, or discuss their pros and cons in an open meeting, then get feedback from the public. Trying to create a "stealth university" isn't a winning long-term strategy.

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This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Does IRSC need $326 million project, including convention center?