Goal is to begin construction in August 2024 – (Estimated cost runs from $20 to $22 million) – This is second major project in last few months announced to expand west side Community College footprint as $10 million already allocated for separate CTEC expansion; College will seek additional state and federal support for Science Center project
Yavapai Community College announced in its August Facilities Management Newsletter that it has begun moving forward with its plans to build an estimated $20 to 22 million Sciences Center to be located at the College’s Prescott Center. (Click here to take link to newsletter.)
The College says that it is working with “SPS + Architects” and has begun programming for a new three story 30,000 square foot facility that will house Nursing and EMS training. According to the Facilities Management Report, the College hopes to obtain additional funding from the state and federal governments. It is unclear whether the project is actually contingent on obtaining those funds.
It also hopes to break ground for the Center in August 2024. If it does so without state or government aid, it will most likely turn to issuing Special Revenue Bonds of some sort because they do not need approval from residents before they are issued. The College has used this approach before on various projects.
The EMS program, now located on the Prescott Campus, will be moved to the new facility. The vacated Prescott Campus space will be filled by building additional athletic offices to meet the needs of the burgeoning athletic program.
The College said it will continue the existing nursing program on the Verde Campus.
The announcement of the multi-million dollar project is notable for a couple of reasons: First, in the May 2024 approved budget, this project was listed as beginning at the earliest in the 2026-2027 academic year. For unexplained reasons, it has suddenly been moved to begin two years earlier, in August 2024.
Second, this appears to be a missing part of the Master plan originally hatched by the Prescott based College executives back in 2010 where they received Governing Board approval for allocating $103 million or more in capital development with less than 5% going to Sedona and the Verde Valley. At that time, it was expected that all nursing training would be centralized at the Prescott Valley Center, including the nursing program on the Verde Valley Campus.
Fortunately, Sedona/Verde Valley advocates launched a successful campaign to save the nursing training on the Verde Valley Campus. Another factor saving the Verde Valley Campus program was that discussions with Northern Arizona University and others potentially involved in the Prescott Valley project fell apart, which brought a halt to enormous expansion plans. However, the College moved ahead with renovation of a portion of the Prescott Valley Center for its nursing program.
In justifying the 30,000 square foot expansion, College consultants claim that based on projected enrollment growth in the Health Sciences, and “the advantages of bringing all Health Sciences programs together into one building,” a new integrated Health Sciences center is needed, which focuses on partnerships and interdisciplinary pedagogies that provide students with an improved understanding of healthcare practices to help them secure better jobs. (Emphasis added.)
The following is the announcement made by the College:
