Last-Minute Funds Save College of Canyons Library, Arts Hall

College of the Canyons earned money for a new library and arts building the modern way in cash-starved California. They begged for it.

The $11.9-million project fell about $1.6 million short due to inflation and tougher, earthquake-inspired building standards. Community college officials had until last Wednesday to persuade the state, its chief funding source, to pay the extra cost. Failure would have meant delayed, less ambitious projects.

“It looked as if it was just going to turn into another fiasco,” said college President Diane Van Hook.

Instead it became a lobbying coup thanks to school officials’ relentless visits and phone calls to Sacramento. Van Hook said she made more than 100 calls herself.

The state Department of Finance agreed to give the college slightly more than $1 million in additional funds, enough to allow construction to begin in January, Van Hook said.

She said the school will have to scrape up another $260,000 for seismic upgrades and safety inspections, but hopes the Federal Emergency Management Agency or a similar group will cover it.

But more than $300,000 is still needed for landscaping, studio lighting and other equipment, said Bruce Fortine, president of the college board of trustees. He said the board will meet just after construction starts to determine if the financially strapped public school can cover the shortfall.

“If it comes to landscaping or offering classes, we’re going to offer classes,” he said. “I would hope that we could get assistance from people in the community for things like that.”

The 35,689-square-foot library and an arts building of equal size are expected to take about two years to complete, Van Hook said. The library will triple the number of books and other materials now available to the school’s 6,000 students. The arts building will provide a new, sorely needed home to art and journalism courses now crammed into a science building.

The original cost of the buildings was estimated at $10.3 million. But higher prices in the construction industry, coupled with stricter building standards following the Northridge earthquake, drove up the cost.

College of the Canyons needed a funding increase of 14.6% over the original estimate to build all components of the project, including a concrete fountain at the library. The school reached a compromise agreement with the state chancellor’s office for a 10% increase that sacrificed the fountain but retained the most critical portions of the project, Van Hook said.

Then the state Department of Finance rejected the bargain and began asking the college for revised project proposals. And in the meantime, the college was up against a contract deadline with its builder, said school spokeswoman Sue Bozman. She said the whole bidding process would have had to start anew if state funding had not been secured.

Delaying the project would have increased its cost .5% every month, Bozman said.

Thus began the flurry of calls and visits to Sacramento from college officials. They also persuaded local business and civic leaders to place calls on the college’s behalf. That included Assemblyman William J. (Pete) Knight (R-Palmdale) and Rep. Howard (Buck) McKeon (R-Santa Clarita).

“We feel very fortunate that we had the support of our Legislature in this process,” Van Hook said. “They were critical.”

The increase makes for a rise of slightly less than 9%, compared to the 10% in the original compromise.

But Fortine said he is happy with what the college has won.

“I feel fortunate we got what we did,” the trustee said, “because we came within a hair of losing everything.”