Awed by the new, clean, and oh-so-shiny new MSB Building? So was Ted Leonsis (COL `77), AOL executive and owner of the Washington Capitols, when he visited the building last Monday. On his blog, Ted’s Take, Leonsis raved about the new building right down to the details, like the student blasting Kid N Play on his iPod:
“Wow — the energy in the building was crackling — undergraduate students mingling with grad students — in a spectacular new building — maybe the best facility I have ever been in for a University setting. I am so proud of this new building — and we have no mortgage on it to boot; if ever you are in town — go check out this facility.”
And though he may be a member of Georgetown’s Board of Directors, it’s heartening to earn the approval of someone like Leonsis. The Washington business whiz has been on too many “of the year” lists to count, he has his hands in technology, philanthropy, and ‘filmanthropy,’ and he’s survived a crash landing of a plane to boot.
The crash prompted him to make a list of 100 things he wanted to accomplish, including own a sports team (he bought the NHL’s Capitols) and donate $1 million to Georgetown, which he did. As of 2007, he was still looking for a building to put his family name on. Hello, Leonsis Science Building?
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An e-mail from President John DeGioia this afternoon settled the mystery of who the new MBS building would be named after: Rafik Hariri, the Lebanese Prime Minister assassinated in 2005.
Hariri’s son and new Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri (MSB ‘92) paid $20 million to name the building after his father. According to the e-mail, there will be a formal celebration of the new building in September.
Boston University’s School of Management also has a building named after Rafik Hariri.
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Scott Chessare witnessed a major intern gaffe involving the very dreamy Paul Rudd.
Nick Bunker was glad to get back to a place where the ambulances appreciate T-Pain.
How much does a Final Four basketball coach cost? About $2 million, if the coach is John Thompson III.
In the 2007-2008 school year, Thompson made $2,007,508, plus more than $1 million in deferred compensation and benefits, according to university tax documents obtained by Vox. Thompson’s salary rose by more than $1.3 million from the previous year, making him the highest paid Georgetown employee.
During the 2007-08 year, we also paid $3,074,487 to Payette Associates Inc., a firm whose website says they have been working on the “Science Facilities Master Plan and new Science Center” and $489,234 to Goody Clancy and Associates, the firm that worked on the new MSB building. Overall, Georgetown’s net assets decreased by $55,772,042.
Who else besides JT III is making bank at Georgetown? Check out the top earners and the full tax document after the jump!
The unnamed MSB “New Building” is moving along more or less on schedule. Originally slated to open in Summer 2008, the biz school website now says early 2009; but maybe a six-to-eight month delay only seems tolerable when you’re used to waiting a few extra years.
Now that the façade is near completion, the south side of the building looks elegant, with its grey stone and high arches. The glass on the east side will offer views of the new science center and what will someday be a sweet sledding hill.
Then, suddenly and inexplicably on the north side of the building, the material changes to brick and the Leavey style. Yeah, it’s probably an effort to “integrate” the new and old campus styles, but that isn’t usually as simple as splitting the building in half, making one side in the old style and one side in the new.
It looks like they started with stone on the left side, ran out of money, and settled for the cheaper brick for the rest. And maybe I’ve seen The Dark Knight way too many times this summer, but I can’t help but think of Two-Face whenever I walk by it.
Vox Populi is the staff blog of the Georgetown Voice, a weekly newsmagazine at Georgetown University. Opinions expressed in posts are those of their author alone unless otherwise stated.
The two million dollar man
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