Innovative vertical campus serves as sustainable and economic model for college districts.
Mt. San Jacinto College serves about 27,000 students in a district covering 1,700 square miles from the San Gorgonio Pass to Temecula. The district used Measure AA funds in March 2018 to purchase 3.17 acres with 367,000 GSF office building. This facility is the first permanent campus of higher education serving Riverside County’s southwest region.
19six was brought on board to aid the District in bringing the entire building up to higher life safety standards. Planning this dynamic educational hub by creating a vertical campus that provides quality, accessible, equitable, and innovative educational programs for students to achieve their academic, career, and personal development goals.
The college will welcome students in Fall 2021 to their newest campus providing 22 Classrooms, 6 Science Labs, Art Studio, and 5 Computer Classrooms. It also offers Student Services, Learning Resource Center, Library, Student Life, Health & Wellness Center, Veterans Center, Bookstore, Café, and Campus Safety.
District’s sustainability approach to reviving and utilizing an existing building has a positive and sustainable economic impact on the Temecula community and the environment. Purchasing an existing facility expedited the District’s ability to provide access to quality higher education, much sooner than needed for new construction.
The project results in significant savings of taxpayers’ dollars. The construction cost to build a new structure that is 358,000 SF, plus a central plant and approximately 16 acres of land would be around $250 -$300 million. The current purchase of building and rehabilitation construction costs is approximately $115 million, less than half of the new construction estimate.
Structural Rehabilitation of the existing building – With the support and trust of the District, the team embarked on a non-conventional seismic evaluation and retrofit approach rarely seen on DSA projects in order to meet the project schedule and budget goals.
The campus is designed with an emphasis on shared/flexible spaces where students from different classes can collaborate in a team environment. The design includes student gathering and study rooms throughout the building footprint, thus promoting further interaction between students and faculty. Transparency and visibility throughout the interior promoting awareness of different programs and education. Daylighting is provided for 90% of the program spaces. The entire campus is accommodated within the existing footprint of the building maximizing the usable square footage.
It is a Comprehensive Vertical Campus promoting further collaboration and interaction between students, faculty and staff.
“We are pleased to bring this beautiful and innovative, state-of-the-art higher learning facility to Temecula, Murrieta and the surrounding communities,” said Dr. Roger Schultz, Superintendent/President. “It will be extremely conducive to student success and collaboration.”
