The Â鶹´«Ã½AVeast Regional College is preparing for renovations to their campus in Weyburn, and whether they like it or not, plans to keep them a part of the high school, rather than a standalone facility, are underway. And while construction of the Saskatchewan Energy Training Institute (ETI) in Estevan is already underway, the Weyburn campus has a long way to go before they will see a new building.
The college has recently begun the long renovation process by first moving their administrative offices from the current campus at Weyburn Comprehensive School to an office building on the corner of Fourth Street and Railway Avenue. Plans to move students and classes is dependent on the renovation schedule of St. Michael's School, as the Holy Family Roman Catholic Separate School Board is planning on moving students from St. Dominic Savio School to St. Mike's when renovations are complete. Once St. Dominic's is empty, the college will move in, but not before renovating the elementary school to suit their needs - a project that will likely cost about $350,000 and take four to six months to complete.
President and CEO of Â鶹´«Ã½AVeast Regional College (SERC) Craig Brown called this investment "throw away money" for the college as the school will only provide temporary accommodations for SERC students and instructors. There is some opportunity for cost sharing, as Holy Family plans to use the building for corporate office space once the college leaves.
Brown's main problem with the Advanced Education, Employment and Immigration Ministry's decision to maintain the college's position at the high school is that the size of their current facility will not be increased, despite significant growth.
"We've had a 68 percent increase in student numbers in the last six years here in Weyburn," said Brown.
Brown feels that staying attached to the high school "severely limits any changes we might like to make to that space," such as a student residence.
"We have one-week safety programs that companies can't send their guys to because they can't get a hotel room in town," said Brown.
The college is looking at private fundraising to develop a residence in the future at an off-site location.
Brown said that being attached to the high school also limits the college's identity. He said that the largest part of SERC's budget comes from the private sector and it takes an attractive building, like Estevan's ETI, to encourage investment.
SERC is currently fundraising for a $3.5 million investment into the ETI in order to furnish its three large training labs with state-of-the-art equipment. One company has already approached SERC about making a major investment in the ETI, and Brown said that SERC plans to make a big announcement about this in the upcoming months.
Basically, it all comes down to money, but Brown said that constructing a brand new standalone building would probably cost less than renovating their existing space. The price tag for renovations to the Weyburn campus is approximately $15 million, while the cost to build the much larger ETI is $14.2 million.
"For me, it's frustrating because I know we could do more for almost the same amount or less," said Brown.
Brown said SERC has not been given a choice by the Ministry and the only way that they will receive capital investment from the government is by building onto the high school, an opportunity that SERC was not willing to give up.
"I am thrilled to get a new campus here," said Brown, despite his concerns.
He said that a new building, despite its shared location and insubstantial size, is a big improvement over what they currently have.
"We have the largest number of students of any regional college in the province and the campus here in Weyburn is absolutely the worst, most disgusting campus in the province," said Brown.
Timing is another big factor, according to Brown. The college is included in phase two of renovations to the Comp, which likely won't go to tender until April or May of 2013.
"It may be 2015 before the college actually moves into the new building," said Brown.
Brown is thankful for the new space being built for the Weyburn campus; however, he feels that several opportunities are being lost, such as allowing the college to move into one of three local schools slated for closure - St. Dominic, Haig and Queen Elizabeth.
"Are there other opportunities - yes, are we seizing them - no," said Brown.
Estevan's new ETI should be completed by next summer. Brown said the ETI will be a "centre of excellence" that will allow SERC to expand the programs they currently have.
