GCC official suggests acquiring Civic Auditorium
A man who has represented faculty at Glendale Community College campus for four years suggested college officials turn the Glendale Civic Auditorium into updated classrooms.
Michael Scott, the outgoing academic senate president, offered college officials several pieces of advice during his last board of trustees meeting.
In addition to acquiring the auditorium, Scott suggested expanding the college’s technology infrastructure, passing another bond and revising the college’s mission statement.
“We need to hold discussions with the city of Glendale to request they either sell or donate the Civic Auditorium across the street to GCC,” Scott said last week. “We need to get started on this now because whether we buy or have it donated to us, we need a decision before we can place a bond measure so we can include it in the plan. There is so much we can do with that underutilized building. We can do far more with it than indoor soccer for kids.”
Scott went on to say he envisions new state-of-the-art labs, classrooms and a student union.
“The district needs to continue thinking outside the box,” Scott added.
Neither college trustees nor Supt./President David Viar addressed the suggestions.
For council members, the idea Scott said he’s had for years was the first they have heard of it.
“We would have to probably sit down and discuss the idea,” said Councilman Ara Najarian. “I don’t think the city would be in a position of donating it. If it’s an issue of being purchased, we can sit down and talk about it.”
Councilwoman Laura Friedman said she would need to “hear a lot more details” on the plan.
With the auditorium being utilized for sports and various activities, she said, “It would be great to see it renovated and used.”
However, she added, “I don’t like the idea of having it disappear and becoming classrooms.”
Councilman Dave Weaver said city officials have worked hard to increase the auditorium’s usage, and that the city most likely wouldn’t donate the auditorium.
But in selling it, Weaver said, “It would really be vetted…It’d have to have a pretty damn good offer to be of any merit.”
Since October, college officials have been overseeing the construction of a new $40 million lab/college services building slated to become the campus’ largest structure yet at three stories and 90,000 square feet when it opens in late 2015.
For comparison, the 1938-built Civic Auditorium consists of 25,000 square feet.
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