PBSC to hold groundbreaking ceremony for new campus Nov. 7
Palm Beach State College is holding a groundbreaking ceremony Nov. 7 for its fifth campus in Loxahatchee Groves.
The ceremony will be held at 1 p.m. on a small, open plot on the 75-acre campus site at the northwest corner of Southern Boulevard and B Road in the rural town of about 3,000 residents. Because of limited access and parking, the event is by invitation, and guests are being shuttled to the site. However, the College will videotape the ceremony and post it on its website. Staff, faculty, students and the public can follow the celebration through updates on the College’s social media sites.
Palm Beach State has not built a campus since the early 1980s when it established the Palm Beach Gardens and Boca Raton campuses one year apart. The new campus, slated to open in 2016, will provide convenient access to classes for residents in the county’s west central communities, including Loxahatchee Groves, Loxahatchee, Royal Palm Beach, Wellington and The Acreage.
“We are looking forward to commemorating this milestone and creating this educational opportunity for the residents in Loxahatchee Groves and surrounding communities,” said Palm Beach State College President Dennis Gallon.
Palm Beach State received $6 million in legislative funds earlier this year toward construction of the first building — a three-story, 50,000-square-foot multi-purpose facility with classrooms and computer labs, administrative offices, a 250-seat multi-purpose lecture hall and ancillary support spaces. It contains 468 student stations. This phase, which includes the building and site design, paving, drainage, utility infrastructure and the furniture, fixtures and equipment, is expected to cost $25 million.
The College plans to add two additional buildings within five to seven years depending on enrollment and the availability of construction funding. The next two buildings will include labs, a library/study space, a cafeteria and a student center.
After considering several sites, PBSC finalized the purchase of the land in Loxahatchee Groves in October 2012, and in October 2013 the District Board of Trustees voted to spend up to $4 million for architectural design, infrastructure and site work. The board also approved the educational specifications for the entire first phase of the campus.
