College presents formal changes to capital development plan to Governing Board at its March 7, 2017 meeting — Verde Valley citizen awareness pays off 

Yavapai College Vice President of Finance and Administrative Services, Dr. Clint Ewell, announced major changes in the $104 million dollar capital development plan adopted by the Governing Board in December, 2013.  Ewell wrote to the “Board that “With the changes made thus far, and the approval of the new recommended changes,  the Capital Master Plan  budget would be reduced to approximately $76M, down from the original $104M estimate.”  This is a saving of $28 million dollars.

The biggest reduction came as a result of a reduction in size of the construction projects on the Prescott Valley Campus.  Verde Valley representatives (Oliphant, Filardo, McCasland) and the Verde Valley Board Advisory Committee had raised questions about the construction in that town for at least three years.  Their watchfulness and a change in presidents at Northern Arizona University may have caused the College to back off its plans for a 136,000 square foot addition.  Here is what Dr. Ewell wrote to the Board at Tuesday’s meeting.

“YC still believes additional space is needed in PV; however, we have reduced the scope of the expansion to 50,000 feet rather than 136,000 feet as originally envisioned. Prescott Valley is still envisioned as the primary hub of allied Health programs (except Nursing). This represents a reduction of roughly $33.1M.”

There are now more than sufficient funds available to construct a career and technical education center (smaller) and a residence hall (pay for itself) on the Verde Campus.

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Savings estimated at $38 million; new plan needed; where will savings go?

It has become clear that the plans for a major Yavapai College Prescott Valley Allied health Center, first announced at the December 13, 2013 Governing Board meeting, have been scrapped. The College made this announcement initially at its May, 2016 meeting and reaffirmed the decision at its September, 2016 meeting. There has been no movement to change since September.

Originally, the College intended to build a 136,000 square-foot building at a cost of $52 million at the Prescott Valley Center. That was to house an expanded Allied health program, possibly in a partnership with northern Arizona University. The College says it  will now build a 9,000 square foot addition at a cost of about $5.8 million at the Center and cap the cost of a future university learning Center at $14 million.

It is unclear what caused the College to alter its course. The President suggested it discovered it didn’t need the programs that were intended to occupy the facility. However, a change in the administration at NAU, which appeared to be an early major partner,  may have something to do with the decision.

Under the December, 2013 $103.5 million capital development plan the Sedona Center and Chino Valley Center were both to be closed and sold. Money from the sale of those properties was apparently to be used to help pay toward the $52 million construction costs at the Prescott Valley site. The Sedona Center idea collapsed because of enormous public opposition to the plan and there appears no effort to close down the Chino Valley Center as contemplated in December, 2013.

In addition to selling the two Centers, the College’s December $103.5 million capital renovation and construction plan was apparently to be supported  by regularly increasing the primary property tax rate and student tuition. With the collapse of the Prescott Valley project and the continued development of the two centers, what plan is the college following?

The answer seems to be that there is no revised plan. The College and Governing Board are plowing ahead in the dark.