EVERETT — So they’ve got the money.
What happens now?
Washington State University received $54.6 million from the Legislature this summer to construct a building that will be the new home for the university in Everett.
Construction on the building is expected to start in the middle of this month, said Paul Pitre, dean of WSU North Puget Sound at Everett. A ground-breaking ceremony is planned for September.
The four-story, 95,000-square-foot building will be located east of the Everett Community College campus on the other side of Broadway. The building will have space for student services, offices, administration, classrooms, and engineering and computer-related labs, Pitre said
“One of the things the Legislature has charged us with is a focus on STEM — science, technology, engineering and math — and along with that focus, we need an opportunity to have laboratory spaces and technology,” he said.
The building is expected to be complete for classes starting in 2017.
The building was the top legislative priority for the college heading into the legislative session.
The university had asked for $61.1 million for the construction.
In 2013, the state put $10 million toward project and about 90 percent of the building is designed, Pitre said.
The current space at the Everett University Center has worked well, Pitre said, but the school is outgrowing that space.
“This building allows us to expand our resources and to expand our program offerings,” he said. “It will have some exceptionally good amenities for our students.”
About 500 students are enrolled at the Everett University Center, and enrollment is expected to grow to 1,100 students by 2021. Some of that growth is dependent on receiving additional funding for new academic programs, Pitre said.
Two new degree programs — one in data analytics and one in software engineering — will start in fall 2016.
“We’re just really excited about the opportunity to have this new campus facility,” he said. “We’re extremely grateful for the support that we’ve gotten from Rep. Mike Sells and Sens. (Barbara) Bailey and (Kirk) Pearson. They’ve been big supporters of our vision of expanding access to high-quality higher education in the region.”
The new building will be next to EvCC’s Advanced Manufacturing Training &Education Center, which opened last year. Students at EvCC and WSU have already been collaborating.
“We can’t wait for WSU to have their new building up,” said Sheila Dunn, EvCC’s associate dean of aerospace and advanced manufacturing. “It’s literally across the parking lot from our AMTEC center. We can’t wait to have those mechancial engineering students so close to us.”
WSU has been happy with the reception it has received in Everett.
Pitre said: “We’re extremely happy about the outpouring of community support that WSU has gotten.”
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