Globe College eyes business park for campus

College eyes business park for campus

By Christena T. O'Brien
Leader-Telegram staff O'Brien can be reached at 830-5838, 800-236-7077 or christena.obrien@ecpc.com.

Globe University, a Minnesota-based private college, could be the newest addition to Oakwood Business Park on Eau Claire's south side. The Plan Commission is scheduled to act on a request Monday for site plan approval for a 31,200-square-foot, two-story building on 4.57 acres off Bullis Farm Road, north of Interstate 94 and west of U.S. 53.

City staff recommend approving the site plan if conditions are met regarding a certified survey map and drainage.

"It's a nice project for this site because it creates a traffic impact (different from that created by the retail development in the area)," city Community Development Director Darryl Tufte said. Construction on the school could start as early as the end of the month, said Disa Wahlstrand, manager of municipal services for Ayres Associates.

The facility will operate between 8 a.m. and 11 p.m., with class offerings weekdays and weekends. Globe has 10 other locations: six in the Twin Cities area, plus Rochester and St. Cloud in Minnesota, Sioux Falls, S.D., and Fargo, N.D. The school's Web site (www.msbcollege.edu) lists five main program areas: business, creative production, health science (including nursing), information technology and legal science.

John Myhre, the listed property agent, couldn't be reached for comment.

Globe officials expect the Eau Claire university to serve an estimated 500 students with about 30 staff, according to a letter from Wahlstrand to Tufte.

Not all students are expected to physically attend the school. An increasing number of Globe students participate in online classes, and as many as 30 percent of their students are full-time online, according to Wahlstrand.

"With this trend, they have reduced their planned parking to 200 to 210 stalls. At a recently developed site in Minnesota, with a student body of 850, they experienced a peak in parking at 236 cars at any period," the letter stated.

(City code states universities shall provide an analysis because of their unique parking needs.)

The site plan calls for 204 parking stalls, with possible expanded parking to the south if needed, according to a city staff analysis of Globe's plans. In addition, bicycle parking would be provided, and a city bus route is a block away.

About Globe

Globe University was founded in 1885 by Frank Maron, an accomplished scholar born and educated in Germany.

The school was bought by Helmer Myhre and Terry Myhre in 1972. Terry Myhre also purchased the Minnesota School of Business in 1988. Both facilities are licensed as private career schools with the Minnesota Office of Higher Education.

n The Eau Claire Plan Commission meets at 7 p.m. Monday in the council chamber at City Hall, 203 S. Farwell St.

So How many more CVTC staff will lose their jobs to outsourcing, now that competition has come to town, and the college is said to be running on an empty checkbook. Layoffs scheduled for December, just in time for Christmas? That's the rumor. Thank you Dr. Bill Ihlenfeldt.