Construction Underway for Housatonic Community College Expansion

Construction Underway for Housatonic Community College ExpansionBRIDGEPORT, CT – Construction has started for the expansion and renovation to Lafayette Hall at Housatonic Community College (HCC).

The Bridgeport, CT, college moved to its current location in 1997. At that time, the college had approximately 2,700 students enrolled and immediately experienced a significant enrollment increase. Current enrollment is 5,369 students.

To accommodate HCC’s steady growth, the college opened its second building, Beacon Hall, at the southern perimeter of the campus in 2008. The additional 174,500 square feet added classrooms, offices, a large multi-use Events Center, Wellness Center, Students Activities Center and enlarged bookstore.

Continuing its pattern of growth, the current 46,000-square-foot addition will create a new Welcome Center, enabling students to move more easily through the enrollment and registration process. Renovated spaces will also enlarge the college library, academic support center, new science labs and additional offices for student services.

HCC President Paul Broadie says, “The new space will allow us to expand academic programs and provide new ones to meet today’s employment requirements. We are projecting adding programs specifically in STEAM (Science, Engineering, Arts, Math) courses.

The $37.5 million project is expected to create over 600 construction-related jobs.

The college will continue all normal procedures and activities throughout the construction process.

Construction is expected to be completed in 2017, in time for the college’s 50th anniversary.

Featured

  • Opportunity by Design Framework

    Opportunity by Design

    Educational improvement efforts often focus on curriculum, instruction, assessment, professional development, and intervention systems while treating the physical school building as background. But school design is not a passive backdrop to learning — it is a structural lever for equity.

  • Indiana University Launches Capital Campus in D.C.

    Indiana University recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new IU Capital Campus in Washington, D.C., according to university news. The eight-story facility will provide a central hub for the university’s existing programs and business operations based in D.C., uniting them under one roof and providing the opportunity to expand.

  • Fargo, N.D., Starts Construction on Consolidated Elementary School

    Fargo Public Schools in Fargo, N.D., recently announced the beginning of construction on a new elementary school, according to a news release. The district partnered with ICON Architectural Group and Kraus-Anderson Construction on the new Horace Mann Elementary School.

  • How Proactive Maintenance Can Transform Athletic Facilities into Strategic Assets for College Sports

    College athletics is entering one of the most transformative periods in its history. With NIL reshaping financial models and competitive expectations, athletic departments across the country are being asked to do more than ever with increasingly constrained resources.