The University of Hawai'i-Manoa Faculty Senate has delayed a special meeting on a proposed Navy university affiliated research center until next week after its committee on UARC said it needed more time to make a final report.

The eight-member committee is awaiting a final report from outside counsel reviewing a draft contract on the proposed research center.

The counsel has said the contract has proven to be more complex than expected, and Sara Rutter, chairwoman of the ad-hoc committee on UARC, said the committee "simply needs more time."

The committee had been scheduled to take an official position today on the proposal.

UH officials have said the center could bring in an estimated $50 million in research money, but the proposal has generated considerable opposition on campus. Opponents fear that the research could involve development of military weapons, and Native Hawaiian students in particular objected because they said it represents a stronger military presence in Hawai'i.

Gary Ostrander, vice chancellor of research and graduate education, has said the plan was to have the UH Board of Regents hear the proposal at its Nov. 17 meeting. But with the Faculty Senate postponing an up-or-down vote on the center until Nov. 2, that would leave just two weeks for a public hearing and consideration by top UH officials.

Kathleen Cutshaw, vice chancellor for administration, said yesterday that the administration is still aiming for the November Board of Regents meeting and that she feels two weeks would be enough time to fulfill the process.

"I'm not sure why there is this rush, since the UARC has been in incubation for several years. We just haven't had enough time to really have good discussions," said Rutter.

Carolyn Tanaka, UH spokeswoman, said the Faculty Senate should not feel rushed and that there is no pressure from UH interim president David McClain to make a decision in haste.

"If the Faculty Senate feels it needs more time, then by all means, they should take the time to review the documents," said Tanaka.

At a faculty meeting last week, many said that the Faculty Senate should take as much time as it needs to digest the UARC proposal.

"We ought to have as much time, in weeks, as the administration has had in years," said Mimi Sharma, a professor of Asian studies.

Reach Loren Moreno at lmoreno@honoluluadvertiser.com.