College receives land for new campus

SOCC President Patty Scott and Rio Tinto Vice President Dennis Boyle perform a ceremonial signing of a deed that gives the college land for a new campus. Photo by Anne Matthews

One class had been rescheduled to free up the room, another was full of students taking a test, and three groups of students huddled in different corners of the computer lab. Officials coming to the celebration searched for parking.

Nine years after the idea was first proposed, officials celebrated Thursday. The deed has changed hands for 10 acres of land at Lone Ranch donated by U.S. Borax for a new community college building.

The construction of the new Brookings Center will go out for bid in April, with the Southwestern board considering the results in May. If all goes as planned, she said, there will be a grand opening celebration in October 2011.

“It’s just as exciting for us as it is for the community,” said Dennis Boyle, a vice president of Rio Tinto, the parent company of U.S. Borax.

The company is moving ahead with the detailed development plans for the first phase of its Lone Ranch project, he said, including 200 housing units and two commercial developments to support the college project.

“I want to assure you that our development is being designed to fully complement the college and the community as a whole,” Boyle said.

The plans for the “campus within a building” are nearly complete, Scott said. “We have funding for 17,000 square feet; we want to build 24,000 square feet. If necessary, we’ll have to do it in phases.”

Toward that fundraising process, Gary Milliman was one of the celebration speakers, both as city manager of Brookings and as co-chair of the fundraising campaign for the college project.

He is involved, he said, “so we don’t have just the basic project but a very adequate building to meet the community’s needs. It’s going to be a wonderful facility that will meet the special educational needs of the community.”

Milliman said there are some tentative pledges of large donations, but they are not ready for public announcement.

The passing of the deed became cause for celebration both because of the long process for making the donation, and the milestone it marks in going into the construction phase.

Burton Weast, project manager, said the approvals for the deed ranged from local planning approval of the project to federal paperwork because Rio Tinto is an international corporation. In terms of the company’s own project, he said the detailed development plan for the first phase should come to the city for review early this summer.

In their remarks, Scott, Boyle and Milliman thanked several people for being involved in pushing for the land donation and project approval, including:

•Cherie Mitchell, a member of the Southwestern board and a volunteer in the petition drive to add Curry County to the college district.

•Peggy Georgen, the former Curry dean who has been involved in the college outreach to Curry County since before the annexation.

•Stephen Kridlebaugh, the former Southwestern president who made the first inquiries to U.S. Borax.

•State Rep. Wayne Krieger, R-Gold Beach, who helped push for state construction funding and co-chairs the fundraising drive.

•Burton Weast, the Brookings native who is manager of the Lone Ranch Project, and Genc Emre, the project engineer.

•The city of Brookings city council, planning commission and planning staff.

“This is the most exciting thing to happen to me in my short time as college president,” said Scott. “It’s proof that good things do come to those who wait.”