Measure J: Where Will The Money Go?

On November 7, 2006 voters in Yolo, Colusa, Yuba and Sutter counties will vote on Bond Measure J, which if passed will raise $190 million for Yuba Community College District. This money will be spent improving current facilities throughout the district, as well as building new facilities to handle growth.

To address its needs, YCCD has prepared a detailed plan of changes and improvements necessary in the form of the Facilities Master Plan, a 56 page document that is available to the public online at http://www.yccd.edu/documents/viewdocument.php?id=1454. The master plan outlines the need for expenditures at the three main facilities in the district: the main Yuba College campus, the Woodland Community College Campus and the Clear Lake campus. The plan also addresses the Sutter and Colusa counties outreach facilities. The master plan has detailed, building by building, information on repairs necessary as well as required new buildings. Of the $190 million total, the Marysville campus is slated to receive $88.7 million, the Woodland campus $49.4 million and the Clear Lake campus $17.2 million. The new Sutter and Colusa County outreach facilities will cost a total of $34.4 million dollars.

Each of the three main campuses has new buildings as part of the master plan. The Yuba campus will be receiving a 60,000 square foot building to house health occupation programs such as nursing, radiological technology and emergency medical services. This new building will also allow an expansion of math and science facilities by utilizing the space left when the health occupation classes leave their current locations.

The Clear Lake facility will get a new 30,000 square foot multi-use building to replace many of the outdated buildings currently on campus, most of which were temporary buildings erected in the 1970s. Currently the Clear Lake facility has a total of 32,614 square feet, consisting mainly of temporary buildings. Some of these temporary buildings will be torn down to make room for the new permanent building.

The Woodland Campus will get a new visual and performing arts center. The master plan also makes mention of, “A commercial kitchen suitable for a future culinary arts instructional program.” No details are given for the square footage for either of these facilities. Measure J funds will not be used to build the Learning Resources Center which is under construction and already fully funded.

The Sutter and Colusa county outreach facilities will be new permanent homes of YCCD programs. The Sutter facility will house 10 to 12 new classrooms as well as district offices which are now located on the Yuba campus. These classrooms will be an extension of Yuba College. The Colusa facility will be a combination of classrooms and meeting facilities. The Colusa classrooms will be an extension of Woodland College.

Of the $190 million being requested, $71.6 million, or 37.7 percent, of the total has been slated for use on renovations and upgrades. Most of this money will be used to repair buildings and their infrastructure, such as plumbing, ventilation and emergency power. Some of the older buildings have asbestos tile that will be removed and replaced. On the Yuba campus the athletic facilities including the gymnasium, swimming pool and tennis courts will be refurbished and returned to a usable state. The Woodland campus repairs will cover new carpet and extensive roof repairs in many of the current buildings. Clear Lake repairs will be limited due to the fact that the buildings in the worst stages of disrepair will be demolished and replaced.

While upgrading the physical buildings, an effort will also be made to improve the technology infrastructure on all three campuses. A high-speed fiber optic network will be installed at each location which will include access in all buildings. Backup power generators will be used to keep data from being lost in the event of a power outage. Wireless networks will be created for student use while on campus. Also, equipment will be put in place to facilitate distributive education, such as television courses, to make classes available to as many students as possible throughout the district area.

If Measure J passes, the new construction is slated to be completed by the year 2010. The renovations will be completed by 2012. The facilities will be used by students, staff and the surrounding communities. More facilities means that a greater number of students will be able to attend YCCD. Technological upgrades mean that the classrooms and teaching will be able to move toward the future. Facility upgrades mean that classrooms will be available for use by students, faculty and staff.