Denny Cristales
A bunch of rubble, obnoxious noise and talk of the future is all that’s immediately evident thus far on campus.
But what goes down, must come up – er – right?
With the emergence of the Liberal Arts and Disabled Students Services building, inch-by-inch does the completion of the grand construction plan come to be.
The new building now serves as a benchmark for all other future buildings.
The following is what’s next in line for the construction on campus.
The Child Development Center is the next to be completed, with the completion of the structure set for the end of this semester – in December.
The Culinary Arts kitchen is slated for completion that same month, filling the void that Oh No Tokyo! left behind in the Student Center.
The renovation of the Learning Resources Center will be worked on during this time, as well. Excess equipment during this time will be placed in the Multipurpose building.
Along with these plans in mind also came the groundbreaking of the warehouse building last August, paving the way for the Fine Arts complex, set to be completed January 2016.
January 2016 will also see the Computer Information Systems and Math building finished, lurking where the current Technology building stands.
Board of Trustee President Carmen Avalos said, “Having been a student here, I think it’s phenomenal to see this college come up to the standard that I know we’re known for.
“To be able to offer facilities that are state of the art, where students can continue and achieve their goals; to be a part of those successes, that’s what we’re looking forward to.”
All the construction fits into the Facilities Master Plan established in 2011.
In accordance with the plan are these guidelines:
Maximize functional space.
Eliminate non-functional space.
Improve efficiency and utilization of site and facilities.
Right-size the campus to address program needs.
Develop a collegial learning environment.
Improve campus identity, connections and circulation.
Simplify implementation.
Whether or not the new structures fit these presented molds, the goal has always been to be in accordance with the well-being and the future of the student.
Trustee Shin Liu said, “I’m actually jealous of these students. We did a great job to plan all this, so students would be able to have these state-of-the-art buildings; for their children, and maybe even for their children, too. It’ll stay for awhile.”