The ESC project is now in the home stretch. There still remain hoops to jump through, and significant steps to be completed, but at this point, the project is on track, and moving forward steadily.

Later this summer, the ESC Steering Committee intends to present to the Executive Approval Committee for Executive 2 and 3 approval. This presentation will outline to the Executive Committee the expected footprint of the building, the breakdown of spaces within the building, the various siting options,  the sustainability target, the funding structure for the project, and any other major issues that may pertain. The goal of this stage is to ensure that the new building will comply with all of the guidelines set by Campus and Community Planning and other relevant campus groups with regard to responsible development of new capital projects.

Once the project has been approved through all stages of the Executive Approval Committee, it will move on to securing Board of Governers (BoG) approval. This too, is a 3 stage process, but will occur in parallel with other developments on the project. Before any significant work can begin however, a presentation will be made to the BoG for Board 1 approval. This is similar in scope to the Exec 2/3 approval, in that it covers the budget and financing of the project, as well as any relevant information regarding space, site and footprint for the new structure.

Following the Board 1 approval, the Steering Committee will be hiring an architect to design the new building. During this process, it is likely that some adjustments will be made to the sites selected, as well as the overall form of the building, however the amounts and distribution of spaces should remain relatively fixed. As the architect provides more detailed information on the design of the building, it will be possible to make more refined estimates as to the cost of the building.

As the architect completes their work, another presentation will be delivered to the BoG. At this meeting, all of the revised budgets, schedules, and space allocations will be presented, along with the current working drawings of the architect. As well, the Steering Committee will need to have secured Development Permits for the site, in preparation for construction.

Once the architect has completed their work, the search for a contractor to complete construction will begin. As proposals are received, it will become even clearer what the anticipated cost of the new project will be, and so the final step will be to present once more to the BoG. This final presentation will outline the most accurate cost estimates and budgets, and will present a recommendation for the contractor selection. The result of this meeting will be that a contractor will be chosen to perform the work, and will be awarded the contract.

Construction on the new building will take place immediately after this approval, according to the availability of the contractor selected.  At this time, it is estimated that the construction of the new building will take approximately one year. The hope is that the remaining approval processes and architectural work can be completed by the fall of 2011, and that construction can begin in the early part of 2012. If this were to occur, we would expect that the new building would be fully complete in time for the 2013 spring term.