With state funding slashed by $50 million, UCSC can’t afford to squander money, or see the groups that it funds squander it. That was the stated reason for the school to cut all funding to the Arboretum.
With state funding slashed by $50 million, UCSC can’t afford to squander money, or see the groups that it funds squander it. That was the stated reason for the school to cut all funding to the Arboretum. According to Alison Galloway, UCSC’s Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, the garden has been receiving funding from the school for years, but each year it runs up a $250,000 deficit. Until now UCSC has turned this into a low interest loan to the facility, but Galloway says that it can no longer afford to do so. The Arboretum’s total debts to the university is $1.8 million.
Nevertheless, there are no plans to close the Arboretum. Galloway says that all she wants to ensure that employee costs and spending more accurately reflect the garden’s revenues. Dan Harder, who has managed the site since 2001, says that the total budget is just $1 million per year, most of it derived from community donations. But that won’t be enough, he says. More help will be needed if the Arboretum is to go it alone. Read more at the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
