Well there's many other ways that students contribute to the general good of the town. Not least by manning the Amex catering kiosks. And the huge influx of Chinese students all seem pretty well-to-do and will all be spending big chunks of their allowance SOMEWHERE around town, thereby pumping...
For sure the global financial crisis killed it stone dead. The plan was unveiled in 2003 though. Without the inevitable opposition and haggling over the scale of the project there is at least a sporting chance that it may actually have been nearing completion when the financial crash hit. Though...