Muskegon Community College has signed a purchase agreement with The Herald Publishing Co. LLC and the owners of the former Muskegon Chronicle building, 981 Third St., to buy the building and an adjacent parking lot.
The announcement was made during a special meeting of the MCC Board of Trustees on Thursday, Sept. 11.
The identification of a downtown campus is a component of the College’s 2010-15 Facility Master Plan and is one of four projects approved by the voters in the November 2013 election.
“The Board of Trustees has evaluated several locations for the Downtown campus,” said MCC Board of Trustees Chair Donald Crandall. “After much discussion, the Board feels that the Chronicle Building best fits our needs for housing the Applied Technology and Entrepreneurial Studies programs and, at this time, will have the greatest impact on downtown development.”
The building, which was purchased for $700,000, provides MCC with 50,000 sq. ft. of academic space. The site was vacated in early 2012 when the newspaper and its MLive operations moved to the Sidock Building, on the corner of Third Street and West Western Avenue. The purchase is subject to MCC’s satisfaction with inspections and other contingencies that will take place during the next 45 days.
“I cannot express the level of thanks to the community for supporting the college in making this upgrade possible,” said MCC President Dale Nesbary. “Muskegon Community College is now able to move forward with a critically important piece of the master plan. Our students, faculty, and staff will move from a 47-year old building into a state-of-the-art technology center fully capable of serving our community and region.”
Among the MCC academic programs to be located there are: Applied Technology, Electronics, Industrial Technology, Renewable Energy, and Entrepreneurial Studies, as well as Experiential Learning opportunities.
“One local employer recently shared that they have 200 positions open and currently have to import employees from other regions,” noted Nesbary. “This upgrade will help us serve this business and others even more effectively.”
Renovations to support the curricular and business needs of the programs relocating downtown will begin in March 2015. Classes will be offered at the MCC downtown site beginning in January 2016.
The College’s enrollment has expanded from 2,000 students in the mid-1960s to approximately 5,000 students today. The technology building, presently located on the north end of campus, has experienced much of this growth, said Nesbary.
Facilities are a key component of MCC’s Student Success and Completion initiative which the college launched in 2010.
“Our mission is to ensure that our students get the services, resources and support they need to succeed,” explained Nesbary. “Historically, we know that facilities, especially those equipped with state-of-the-art technology, are vital for our graduates to compete in today’s market. At MCC, Building for the Future means preparing our students for the jobs of the future.”