Only a few feet from where students eat in the DVC Cafeteria, the Contra Costa Community College District’s Bond Oversight Committee met in the Trophy Room to discuss appropriations of funds and the status of bond-funded projects for each campus in the district. Overall, their tone was optimistic and Diablo Valley College was praised for their use of the Measure A funding. This should not to be confused with last November’s Measure A ballot, which did not pass.
DVC stands alone among the three schools in the district as the first to complete all pertinent projects and close out their Measure A Bond Program from 2002 with a zero balance. Contra Costa College and Los Medanos are still working to complete various projects, many of which have gone over budget and are still in development. CCC’s Music Building remodel, for instance, has gone over budget by three percent and is still in progress. LMC is much closer to closing the books on their 2002 Measure A Budget, reallocating funds for roof repair from other projects that seem to be operating under budget.
The new Student Services Building, in particular, was praised. Board member Ray Pyle described it as “phenomenal” for reaching completion within two weeks of its proposed completion date.
“I’ve never [seen] an artist’s rendering resemble, so closely, reality,” said Pyle. He further illustrated his point by comparing the artist’s rendering of the proposed interior to a photograph taken from his own iPhone.
The proposed district-wide “IT Infrastructure Project” seems to be the next project to keep the Oversight Committee “…crawling all over DVC,” said Pyle. He asserted that the project “will touch every campus, district-wide” in order to update and improve the overall performance of the WiFi connections available on campus.
The district’s continued efforts are very visible around campus, as the old admissions building is bulldozed to make way for a new Culinary Arts and cafeteria building, as well as a new Central Commons Area, estimated for completion January 2015.