Campus Bike Center receives $50,000 in funding

James+Roedl+inflates+a+tire+at+the+Campus+Bike+Center%2C+located+at+608+E.+Pennsylvania+Avenue+in+Champaign.+The+project+collects+used+bicycles+and+refurbishes+them+for+further+use+and+recently+received+funding+to+continue+its+work.

James Roedl inflates a tire at the Campus Bike Center, located at 608 E. Pennsylvania Avenue in Champaign. The project collects used bicycles and refurbishes them for further use and recently received funding to continue its work.

By Edward Gathercoal

Earlier this year, the Campus Bike Center was struggling to find funding sources to continue its operation after it lost two previous donors. Before CBC reached its June 30 deadline, the University’s administration agreed to fund the center for one additional year to allow it to build a self-sustaining  program.

The administration agreed to fund the center for $50,000 from June 30, 2014, through fiscal year 2015 to assess the best way to keep the program open in the future.

The Campus Bike Project provided an additional $13,300 that CBC needed for its budget, according to James Roedl, director of the Campus Bike Center.

“I really am glad that we were able to receive this funding from the campus administration because it indicates their deep acknowledgment that this is something that is needed for our campus,” said Morgan Johnston, associate director of Sustainability. “This isn’t just a Band-Aid solution. It is a very helpful first step in finding a long-term solution.”

Student Body President Mitch Dickey said there are around 5,000 people who use the center every school year, which makes it “a very important facility on campus.”

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“[CBC] is utilized a lot more than we would maybe think,” Dickey said. “It is something that we would want to have on campus.”

The Student Sustainability Committee funded the center last year to help get it started. At first, Johnston said SSC would not continue as a long-term funding source since their main focus is getting projects started.

However, over the summer SSC granted an extension on the funds from last year. This helped the center use money it saved last year and put it toward this year’s funding.

“(The SSC) is very supportive of this (CBC)and they’ve been a real help in getting this started,” Johnston said.

Previous funding also came from the University’s Facilities and Services discretionary account; however, those funds are no longer available. The center continues to search for a new, long-term funding source.

Johnston and Roedl also mentioned a draft campus bicycle plan that is in its final review stages. Roedl said that the previous plan was 10 years old and needed to be renewed to fit the current times. 

“It is a bit of a process,” Roedl said. “(The administration) wants to make sure it’s accurate and check for consistencies and that it goes along with their mission statement.”

The draft is expected to be approved this fall. 

Johnston said once the new draft plan is finalized, a University of Illinois Foundation donor account is to be set up so that anyone who wants to donate to CBC can do so. 

Beyond the center, the Campus Bike Plan includes having a Campus Bike Coordinator, which would cost an additional $45,000. He or she would be responsible for safety education and transportation advocacy. However, there is currently no funding available for this position.

The draft also includes strategies and regulations regarding bike sharing, bike encouragement and addressing bike infrastructure, such as pathways and parking. 

“Anyone who rides a bike knows how important it is to have a resource like this,” Roedl said. “It is important to have the bike center be the hands and feet of the University’s commitment to being a carbon neutral campus.”

Johnston said she is glad the administration agreed to fund the center this year because this shows the University wants the center to succeed. She also said this should encourage people on campus to use different forms of transportation, including bicycling and the mass transit system.

“The money the campus administration gave to us to afford the center this year is a really great indication of how much they understand that this is important to our students, important to our faculty and staff and a much needed facility,” Johnston said.

Edward can be reached at [email protected].