Regarding President Yudof and his official residence: a UC response

Like University of California presidents for the past several decades, UC President Mark
G. Yudof has resided, as required by policy, in official living quarters also suitable for
conducting university business and hosting various outreach and advocacy activities, with
costs covered by proceeds from a private endowment, not state funds. Unlike other UC
presidents, however, Yudof’s residence has been leased.

The lease and associated costs of the president’s official residence were approved by the
Regents in 2008 because it would have cost millions of dollars more to make the
traditional presidential residence livable and functional. Blake House, the 13,000-square-
foot facility in Kensington where most UC presidents had resided since it was donated in
1957, is in need of an estimated $10.6 million in repairs and renovations, and would cost
an estimated $300,000 a year to maintain. The Regents actions were publicly disclosed
and have been reported by news media many times.

After the two-year lease of an Oakland residence ended badly in a classic landlord-tenant
dispute this summer, the UC president and his wife moved to a house in Contra Costa
County that is more suited to the mix of functions required by his job – not only living
quarters, but also offices for him and a support staffer, and space for business meetings
affecting all aspects of the $20 billion-a-year UC system.

A story produced by the Bay Citizen, a San Francisco Bay Area-based media project,
omitted or conflated key facts, including:

! Contrary to what was reported, the president and his wife resided in two-thirds of
the space – approximately 6,800 square feet – in the 10,000-square-foot Oakland
property.

! The story failed to report that, beyond the lease and upkeep payments, escalating
security costs stemming from protests targeting President Yudof accounted for the
bulk of additional costs at the Oakland residence.

! There were several vendors who claimed non-payment from the landlord,
including a landscaper, an elevator repair service and a plumber, forcing the
university to pick up related costs. The university intends to recovery these costs,
the responsibility of the landlord, through mediation or, if necessary, litigation.

In addition, the key fact that no state funds were used for the lease or associated costs was
buried deep in the story.