Chabot College is planning a transformation for its campus by introducing the Facilities Master Plan (FMP). The FMP is one of Chabot College’s long-ranging documents that identifies areas of the campus buildings, grounds, parking, and facilities that will be improved in the future.
The purpose of the FMP is to establish a plan for the future campus that will include more lecture spaces to support all Divisions, more indoor and outdoor spaces for student interactions, and more efficient and safer pathways through the campus and its surrounding community.
The prior college FMP was completed in 2012 and has been the planning document used during the past six years. It is traditionally updated every five to seven years to address changes on the campus and identify new program facility needs.
One of the FMP’s top priorities to design is the new Library and Learning Connection Building. It will become the main focal point of Chabot College and will be built at the Grand Court of Chabot College.
At first, the new Building 100 was not a part of the FMP project. Funding was insufficient for this idea to become a reality with Bond Measure B. Once Measure A was funded, the Facilities and Infrastructure Technology (FIT) Committee immediately identified and voted on Building 100 as one of the top priority projects, which was consistent with Measure A.
Chabot Library Dean Amy Mattern said, “Building 100 has long been the focal point of Chabot College. The Library and Learning Connection are hubs of learning, innovation, collaboration, and intellectual curiosity now, and we hope to continue and grow this in the new facility.”
The new building has not yet been fully designed, but tri-chairs of the Building 100 group plans envision a space that better reflects students’ current needs. Outreach and Instruction Librarian Pedro Reynoso said, “This will not be your “traditional” library. The building will have more collaborative spaces, more study group rooms, and also individual study spaces that reflect students’ study habits at Chabot.”
Tri-chairs of Building 100 also plan to make the new building more technology-friendly for students. Reynoso said, “We want to have spaces for students to showcase their work throughout the building, either through interactive displays and/or via electronic technology.”
There is no timetable set for when precisely the new Building 100 will be finished. Reynoso said, “We are in the beginning phase of the building process. We are currently in the middle of the visioning process, which will then take us to the schematic design, followed by the approval of the State Architect Office.”
Mattern said, “We will work with our consultants to get input from various folks around campus, including students about visions and needs for the building. In August, we will have a report on our findings and recommendations on what will be in the building and how everything might be situated.”
Consistent with the original 1960s campus layout the new FMP plans to keep, the new Library and Learning Connection building will be surrounded by the core academic, administrative and student support buildings.
The rest of the project that the FMP plans to accomplish includes removing a total of 15 outdated buildings according to the College and instead are planning to add 10 new state-of-the-art buildings. Some of the new buildings include arts and media, medical and dental, and a college center.
The campus is still in the early stages for Measure A. Top college leadership alongside the district facilities management will determine the budget for the entire FMP project.
Vice Chancellor of Facilities, Bond Programs, and Operations Owen Letcher said, “The District will invest a total of approximately 800,000 dollars to complete the individual Facility Master Plans for Chabot College, Las Positas College, and the District Office. Funding is provided by Bond Measures A and B.”
The new FMP will go into effect when adopted by the board of trustees in June 2019. Draft Documents are uploaded onto the Chabot College website with more information on the entire construction project.