By JOHN RUDOLF
Thursday, September 20, 2007 10:12 PM MST
When Bill Ullery looks out on an expanse of dry washes, sandy gulches and scrub brush, he sees not a barren desert, but a thriving community centered on a new four-year university.
???It???s a little bit rough,??? he said, looking over the craggy ground. ???But our whole town looked like this at one point.???
Ullery, as chairman of the Lake Havasu Foundation for Higher Education, is the city???s biggest booster for a project that he says has the potential to forever alter the town for the better. The project he envisions for this rough patch of desert on the shores of Lake Havasu encompasses not only a full-fledged extension campus of Northern Arizona University, but also a new marina, a park, a sports facility, a performing arts center, new shops, a first-class resort hotel, residential housing and an 18-hole championship golf course.
All that, and maybe even a waterslide from the campus into Lake Havasu.
???It???s a college recruiter???s dream,??? Ullery said.
The city???s Planning and Zoning commission recently voted to recommend approval of a measure changing the land-use designation of the proposed university site, sending the measure to the City Council, where it will likely be approved. The measure is part of a concerted effort by the city to secure the 320-acre parcel, since it was made available by the Bureau of Land Management.
Next week, a firm hired by Northern Arizona University will begin a marketing study to determine the feasibility of locating a satellite campus in the city. As part of the study, city officials and community leaders will be surveyed to gauge support for the project
Mayor Mark Nexsen anticipated a positive response from locals.
???I think there is huge support here,??? he said.
Estimates of the future student population vary from as low as 2,000 to as high as 10,000, although the most likely size is around 4,500.
The university would be an ???economic engine,??? Nexsen said, generating new jobs and spurring development, as well as creating a better-educated local work force, potentially attracting new industries to town. The campus and the cultural activities it would generate would also add to the life of the town.
???It???s a real plus from a quality-of-life standpoint,??? he said.
The above information is from The Havasu Foundation for Higher Education
http://www.havasufoundation.com/