Attempting to capitalize on increased voter approval of capital improvement bonds, GCC is investigating the possibility of a large bond measure for the near future.
Written in 1990 and published in 1992, Glendale Community College’s Master Plan was scrupulously adhered to with only three construction projects currently uncompleted.
A proposed Allied Health/Aviation Arts building would have replaced the existing corrugated metal structure (AA), and a Physical Education Complex would have been built where the San Fernando trailers now stand. An extension of the Auditorium building to increase the number of classrooms would have been constructed as well.
Other unforeseen improvement projects, such as equipping the campus with Internet access, were completed yet not predicted in the Master Plan. Currently, the Facilities Master Plan Task Force is undertaking the task of deciding the extended future of the campus and recommending which projects should or should not be built.
The three above uncompleted projects would be the first to be completed if a bond measure were to pass.
“There is a need for these and other facilities on campus,” said Larry Serot, vice president of administrative services. “The citizens of Glendale take pride in a quality city with quality schools; a bond measure to ensure that quality would probably pass.”
Parking is a considerable concern for the task force. The school has hired parking consultants and is considering three possibilities. The first option would be to build a parking structure on the current site of parking lot B/C. Such a project would cost about $8 million and provide about 1,000 parking spaces. The drawback is that most of the spaces would be unavailable during construction.
The second option is to acquire the apartment complex just north of campus that currently blocks access to a parcel of land the school owns to the northeast of campus. To acquire it, compensate the current owners, and pay for the relocation of residents in a time when housing in Glendale is tight would be difficult and costly. The political ramifications and the $17 million price tag would probably be frowned upon by the residents and the Board of Trustees as well.
The third option is to level the college’s not-up-to-regulation playing field and build a parking structure there, perhaps rebuilding the field atop the new structure. Though still expensive – also $17 million – this may be the project that is most viable.
The Master Plan task force, which is made up of two students, two faculty members, two classified staff members and four members of the administration, consider much more than parking problems.
“If we want to be a viable college,” claimed Serot, “we must continue to grow.” This means additional classrooms and instructional services.
The proposed PE complex would probably have a second story of classrooms added to the previous plans, said Serot.
Instruction technology, such as faster Internet access is also being looked at.
There is also a possibility of a one-stop student services building where a student could visit Admissions, Financial Aid, and Counseling without traipsing all over campus. The current proposal places this building adjacent to the AA annex within one of the faculty parking lots. If extended upward, the building could contain more classrooms, as well as a bridge to “Cardiac Hill” with elevators for easier access to the rest of the campus.
There are also long waiting lists at the Adult Community Training Center (ACTC). Plans exist for the doubling of the existing facilities that currently serve a burgeoning student population.
Current election laws would allow for a bond of up to about $100 million to be put on the ballot. “We would never need an amount that high,” claimed Serot. The highest estimates put all the construction projects on the “wish list” at about $80 million. Polls and examinations of voter opinion to be completed in the near future would probably set a much smaller figure.
The earliest that a bond measure could go on the ballot would be March of 2002.