PORT ANGELES — Construction of a 61,750-square-foot building to house general purpose classrooms and arts on Peninsula College’s main campus is ranked high for funding, Tom Keegan, college president, said.

“The state board of Community and Technical Colleges evaluates all the schools on the capital projects list and prioritizes them, and this was put very high up on that list,” Keegan said.

The $37.7 million for the building — an expanded version of Maier Hall that would replace four buildings built in the 1960s as part of the original community college campus — was included in Gov. Chris Gregoire’s proposed capital projects for community colleges.

If the state Legislature approves the funding during the present session, which will end in April, then demolition of the four buildings will begin in July, Keegan said.

“We fully expect that the funding will come through,” Keegan said.

Maier Hall — named for E. John Maier, the founding president of Peninsula College, who served from 1961 to 1975 — is presently Building I, a lecture hall, on the Port Angeles campus.

Demolition of that building, as well as the F, G and H buildings, is expected to be finished in October, with construction of the three-story building beginning in November, Keegan said.

Funding for the building is separate from general operations, he said.

“Capital projects funding comes out of the state bonding capacity,” he said. “That money cannot be used for operations — it can only be used for capital projects.”

Although many projects are being slashed from the Legislative budget, capital projects are often held in favor during tough economic times, Keegan said.

“Projects like this are often considered part of an economic stimulus because they provide construction jobs,” he said.

Maier Hall would be the college’s third major construction project in as many years.

The science and technology building was built in 2007 and the library and administration building in 2008.

Both are on the community college’s main campus at 1502 E. Lauridsen Blvd., Port Angeles. Peninsula College also has branch campuses in Forks and Port Townsend.

Buildings are evaluated for environmental-friendly elements and awarded points based on those elements — the more points the higher the rating.

A building can be certified, silver certified, gold certified or platinum certified.

Maier Hall would be at least silver certified by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, Keegan said.

Both the Science and Technology Building and the library are LEED silver certified.

Some of the “green” elements of the planned building include a moss roof, natural ventilation, paddle fans and use of natural light.

The new Maier Hall would replace 25,646 square feet in the four buildings.

About 37,250 square feet would be classroom space.

It would also house music and art studios and a concert hall.

The concert hall “will be an all-purpose performance space, but it will be acoustically made for music,” Keegan said.

In the works

The pre-design phase — or planning phase — of the Allied Health and Early Childhood Development Center building also was on the list for funding of about $17.87 million.

The health building would house the nursing, medical assistant, massage therapy and dental hygiene programs.

“During this phase, we will be looking at specifically what we need, how many classrooms and at cost estimates for those classes,” Keegan said.

“For example, a sterile medical lab will cost more to build than, say, a general purpose classroom.”

Planners will determine whether the two facilities — the health building and child development center — will be combined or in separate buildings.

The current Early Childhood Development Center is housed in a former athletic building.

“We need updated facilities for our students and for the children,” Keegan said.

The center serves a twofold purpose, acting as a child-care center and also as a learning center for students who are going into early childhood education who teach at the center.

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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.