A walk from the 2400 building to the library on campus is surrounded by chain link fences and the sound of jackhammers. Workers in hardhats toiling diligently under the hot sun are a common occurrence, and the pleasant rumble of machines is ever present.
The sight of chain link fences and the sound of jackhammers are not foreign to LPC students. Construction has been making a home at Las Positas College for a year now, shifting student parking and creating new walkways to class. When will it be complete?
The answer is soon. By Thanksgiving, partial construction will be completed at Las Positas College, and by spring, the chain link fences and jack hammers will disappear. In place will stand brand new buildings, walkways and seating areas for LPC students to take advantage of and enjoy.
“We have worked very hard with contractors to be sensitive to classes going on, and we certainly are doing everything we can to provide clear walkways through the construction area,” said Bruce Rich, campus program manager. “We think it’s great of the students and faculty to bear with us as we work through this.”
At present, three main projects are underway. One project is designed to create a new Student Services and Administration Building. This is being constructed near the cafeteria and has been an ongoing process since the last fall semester. All student services functions are scheduled to be completely moved by spring, giving the project a timeline of a year and a half.
“With the convenience of the new Student Services offices will come improvements of pathways, ‘sticky space’ for students to gather outside and attractive landscaping,” the LPC Strategic Plan 2010-2015 stated earlier this year.
The second project is the new science building, and the good news is that it is nearly finished. The renovation itself has been completed. The current patch of construction in front of the 1800 building will be new landscaping designed by Broward Builders, Inc.
The final project is the Campus Boulevard project. Beginning at the school in June 2012, this $2.5 billion project is designed with two objectives. The first objective is to create a new walkway from the Aquatics Center to the 600 and 800 buildings by the new Student Services and Administration Building. This new walkway will be sloped in a way that it provides access to all, meeting requirements for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The second objective is a basic renovation of the campus area between buildings 2100 and 2400.
“[The project] provides pathways and areas with trees and areas to sit down and gather, and [it] creates a central plaza in the area by the library and student services that is much more inviting than what we have up ‘til now,” said Rich. “There will be a fountain area and seating areas in front of the science building.”
Chain link fences and jackhammers will soon disappear at Las Positas College, and in place will be new buildings, new walkways, and new opportunities for all LPC students to enjoy. By the end of May, the completion of the school year will not be the only occasion celebrated by the students and faculty of LPC.