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C Building renovations enter final planning stage

MCCC student Alexander Boudrie is among one of the many students who still use the MCCC Library resources for online and blended courses (Photo by Lauren Werlinger).

The committee for planning renovations of the C Building has moved into the third and final phase of planning.

In this phase, they will focus on construction documentation, said Jack Burns, director of Campus Planning and Facilities. The selected architects and engineers will produce the diagrams and specifications, which will be used by the contractors during the construction process.

Burns said the construction documents will be released in late March. In April and May, the project will be put up for bids, which is the procedure used to find a contractor that will provide the best service for the best price.

In early June, contracts with the subcontractors will be finalized, Burns said. Once the Middle College classes have ended, demolition will commence.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has slowed down the planning process, Burns said. Previously, construction was projected to begin in March or April.

Burns said communication with the architects and engineers has been difficult, but the Information Systems Department has been helpful in providing reliable technology.

“I don’t feel that in any way the quality of the design has been compromised,” Burns said. “In the end, the finished project will be a highly successful transformation of the CLRC.”

Along with the general renovations, the MCCC Library in the C Building will also see enhancements.

Laura Manley, director of the Library, said the entire Library staff was involved with the first two meetings with the architects. The staff gave feedback about potential layouts of the Library.

“In December, I provided the architects with an exact count of all physical items’ spine widths to adequately plan for shelving,” Manley said.

The C Building will be closed during the renovation, so the Library will not be physically available during that time.

Almost all the library’s collection is digitally accessible, Manley said. All Library services will also be available virtually.

Students can visit the Library website at www.monroeccc.edu/library to use the literary reference chat, request a virtual face-to-face consultation and find the contact information to call or email a librarian.

Students can access electronic resources from home by using their official college log-in information.

Because the C Building will be closed during construction, Humanities and Social Sciences classes will have to be held in another building.

Kevin Cooper, dean of Science and Mathematics and interim dean of Humanities and Social Sciences, said blended or online courses are another option for dealing with the temporary lack of classroom space.

“After seeing the changes with renovations within the L Building, it is always exciting to see an existing structure renovated to fit future needs,” Cooper said. “I am most excited to see more student friendly spaces and also the active classroom space.”

The committee had broken the construction into two phases as a backup plan if MCCC’s Maintenance and Improvement Millage was not renewed. However, the millage was renewed, so now all the planned work will be finished all at once, Burns said.

With a major project such as the C Building renovation, the architects would usually present the designs to the community, Burns said. Now, because of COVID-19 restrictions, the committee is in the process of figuring out an alternate way to communicate the upcoming renovation plans.