The approval of reconstructing building 1 has been finalized and Skyline will be gaining two new facilities.

On March 31, “Skyline Shines,” the weekly newsletter for the college, unveiled its newest project: the construction of two facilities and the expansion of lot L. The first building is a Social Science and Creative Arts complex and the other will be an Environmental Science building.

Renovating building 1 has been an idea in the making since 2015. Over the years, the theater has had an asbestos problem. In the past, The Skyline View has reported that the theater had already shown an asbestos problem.

The Skyline Theater had an asbestos scare back in 2015 where the theater had to close for a few days. Reports showed that the theater equipment may have contained asbestos and it would have not been safe for the use of students and faculty. Luckily, the equipment tested negative.

According to the article, the original plan was to use $100 million dollars in funds that Skyline received to remodel the theater and to build a Social Science/Creative Arts complex that includes Social Sciences and Technology.

However, Skyline has decided to follow a different direction by completely destroying the old infrastructure and constructing two new buildings.

The Social Science and Creative Arts complex will be a 150,000 square foot building. It will house music rooms, a ceramics facility, an art gallery, design studios, classrooms, and instructional and support spaces.

The new theater will also be part of the Social Science and Creative Arts complex. It will include a 520-seat performing arts theater, a 220-seat recital hall and a black box theater.

Dr. Regina Stanback Stroud, President of Skyline College and Richard Rojo, Interim Director of Marketing, Communication and Public Relations were enthusiastic about how the new facilities will serve students and faculty.

“Skyline College is planning ahead for the educational needs of our students and the needs of employers in the Bay Area,” Stroud said. “That means we need modern facilities to offer the best education that we can possibly provide for students”

The demolition of building 1 will commence in the Summer of 2018 and reconstruction is expected to begin in Fall of 2018. Meanwhile the new Social Science and Creative Arts complex is expected to be open to students by late 2021.

The environmental science building will be the first building at Skyline that will overlook the the Pacific Coast. The building will hold two 56-seat classroom/laboratories and two 119-seat lecture halls. It will also house academic offices, a catering kitchen and a lobby.

Rojo mentioned why the new Environmental Science building is vital to the college and what it can offer.

“The new Environmental Science building will have modern lecture halls and classrooms taking advantage of the latest technology and allowing us to meet the growing interest in our environmental science and conservation programs,” Rojo said. “It will be an inspirational place to learn, with sweeping views of the Pacific and a spectacular deck for special events.”

The construction of the Environmental Science building is scheduled to begin in the Summer of 2017 and is planned to be finished by the end of 2018.

According to “Skyline Shines,” the project will also expand lot L. The lot currently holds 110 paved and 200 dirt spaces. It will be expanded to 500 parking spaces for faculty and students. It is hoped that the expansion will improve parking issues and reduce traffic.

Construction of lot L will commence next month and will be re-opened sometime in November.

The funds for the project came from the San Mateo County voters. They voted yes on the two new facilities by passing two bond measures.

Measure A passed in 2005 which provided $468 million dollars for new infrastructure at all the community colleges in the district. Measure H was passed in 2014 and provided the district with $388 million dollars to modernize the three colleges.

This money has been divided among the three colleges in the district for innovation and construction. None of the money used to build these facilities came out of the students’ pockets.

With these new facilities, Skyline hopes to move forward and put the needs of its students first.