Brenda Landes
Photos courtesy of SFCS
Before Dirt is Turned Over By Brian Bongard
Before construction begins, there’s the architectural and design process; Roanoke’s SFCS describes.
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How do big sophisticated projects like the new cutting-edge Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, (STEM) building at Virginia Western Community College, or the new Bioscience center at Blue Ridge Community College (BRCC) go from vision to reality? It brings to mind the old question, “How do you eat an elephant?” The answer being, “One bite at a time.”
In the case of the 72,000 sq. ft, $37 million STEM building in Roanoke, it started with the vision of Dr Robert Sandel, long time President of VWCC. In a Campus News announcement, he said “We expect it to be a destination for students and industry partners who are interested in getting ahead in the region’s growing STEM-focused economy”.
But the more specific answer is that it takes a multitude of talented, hard-working people, from the presidents of the schools to the carpenters and bricklayers. Guided by a well-defined process, they work together to bring the vision to life. The process is important. The people create the magic.
The 40,000 sq. ft, $16 million Bioscience building at BRCC was to be geared specifically toward educating skilled workers for the area’s health care systems.
t MARCH 2020 / vbFRONT.com
Then the Virginia Community College System gets involved. They are the government hub
