As of this semester, Citrus College has seen blue fencing cordoning off sections of campus, with many students confused as to why.
The Liberal Arts/Business building, better known as the LB building, and the Veterans Success Center are being demolished in order to make way for a new campus STEM Building, with fencing going up in order to protect students from any danger from the construction site.
The original building predated the Americans With Disabilities Act and was not accessible to students or faculty with disabilities. The old building would have required several retrofitting procedures to maintain adherence to building code.
The new science building will be roughly 63,000 square feet, with a dedicated wing to host the new Veterans Success Center. The building is set to be a net zero energy building, made to produce as much energy as it uses.
Students will be able to use the new laboratories, classrooms and interactive learning spaces within the building. The construction being the first project funded by Measure Y, the $298 million bond passed by voters in 2020.
Students at the beginning of the semester voiced concerns regarding possible ADA issues with the fencing. These issues involved the lack of shade in the available space to walk in the campus, and the possible confusion for the Learning Center, which accommodates disabled test takers.
“Disabled students are a big consideration,” said Facilities and Construction Director Fred Diamond. “Fire code is also a big consideration. We had to move the fence several times in the planning phase to make sure it was up to code.”
“We walked the entire site with (Citrus College) Vice President Claudette Dian, and are installing wayfinding signage all along the perimeter,” said Trevor Mason, project liaison.
“Its always a big thought process for us anytime we take over a footprint in the campus, and we went over everything with a fine tooth comb because we know the impact it was going to have,” said Mason.
Progress on the demolition has been steady throughout this semester, with the clearing of the site expected to finish in 5-6 months. However, it is notably ahead of schedule as the LB building has already been completely torn down.
Construction is set to start during the first quarter of 2027. Lisa McPheron, executive director of strategic communications said that the construction of the new science building is expected to continue for up to 2.5 years.
