It may seem like an inconvenience, having to walk varying routes to get to different parts of campus, hearing jackhammers during tests and not being able to use certain facilities such as the pool and familiar parking lots.
But let’s face it. Having to park off-campus is never a reality thanks not only to the recent addition of Parking Lot 8, but also to the vast 20002 renovation of Parking Lot 7 off Victory Boulevard.
Free Wi-Fi in an air-conditioned room with ample seating? A quiet, scenic Botanical Garden for studying or resting between classes?
All of these additions, and countless more, were funded from Propositions A/AA, which provided around $270,000 million to the school between 2001-03.
The propositions planning stages began in 2001 and are predicted to finish final projects in 2012.
The construction, diligently overseen by Swinerton Management and Consulting, has been the largest-scale project Pierce College has ever witnessed.
The administration has gone above and beyond to think of the students’ needs and make sure they are as comfortable as possible during the somewhat irritating construction process. Parking Lot 8 and El Rancho Road, off of De Soto Avenue, were built with haste to ensure completion by the beginning of the Fall 2008 semester.
Even with the Equestrian Center enduring a major renovation, Pierce was home to hundreds of horses around southern California during the recent fires.
There have been debates about tearing down the Equestrian Center all together, but in light of this past month, it seems the college goal of upgrading the Center are correct.
A new Child Development Center, which had its groundbreaking ceremony Oct. 22, had its funding shorted, but since then were able to save enough money to back fund the center, which will be completed in 2010.
Next time you sit down to take your math test and hear noise from tractors nearby, remember how beautified and functional this school has already become with the funding from Propositions A/AA, and how much more it will offer students within the next few years.
Jessie Lomeli (Jessie Lomeli)