CAC groundbreaking this Friday

By Staff

December 13, 2011 - 4:36 pm

An architectural rendering of what the library could look like at the Maricopa CAC campus.Courtesy of SmithGroup.

A groundbreaking ceremony will be held Friday at 12:15 p.m. for the new Maricopa campus of Central Arizona College.

Scheduled for completion by January 2013, the campus will be built on 218 acres south of Bowlin Road and west of White and Parker Road.

The Maricopa Campus is expected to serve up to 20,000 students and employ more than 1,000 faculty and staff. Its location is diagonally across from the future city hall site.

The campus will replace the college’s Maricopa Center, a storefront facility consisting of 2,640 square feet of leased space at 20800 N. John Wayne Parkway.

The curriculum is still in development and will include basic instruction and prerequisites for life sciences. The college is pursuing opportunities for four-year programs with universities, including Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University and the University of Arizona.

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17 comments

This is great news! But here are a few concerns:
How will this affect property taxes?
Where are the students coming from?
Will there be enough college bound population size in maricopa alone?
Why would a student outside maricopa make the Long commute into town if there is a local campus where he/she is (ex In Chandler)?
Will CAC develop a joint pgm with Banner hospital in terms of medical and nursing curriculum?
Are there going to be a local businesses, like eateries, around CAC?

This will be paid for through already approved Bonds.
We are in Pinal County. Chandler is in Maricopa County. This will make a difference for students in regards to cost and transfer credits. So expand the horizon south to Casa Brande instead west to Chandler and the students will come. As far as the pointed CAC questions, I would make a call to their main office. Solid questions though.

Thanks for your response.. About the future city hall site that's going to be situated in Bowlin and White/Parker? Why?? Isn't that location full of empty parcels? I thought city halls are supposed to be at the center of towns. Unless Copa plans to fill all those lots, cityhall is basically at the edge of town.
Also, the future firestation @ Garvey/Edison. Again @ the edge of town. What if there's a fire in tortosa? Hey, I'm all for these developmnts! But don't get their planning reasoning.

The college will be a great contribution to the community.

When our young adults were college bound, we visited each college they were interested in---that was a job in itself! Looking at Maricopa as a parent with a student considering this college---no hotels other than the Casino, no real restaurants and no attractions for the students during non college hours. Yes, there will be a 12 screen movie next to the Casino but little else in Town. It's great that construction has started but what is there, in Maricopa, for the students?

Well mark95man, I would assume that there will be a large population of continuing education adults and commuting students from within Pinal County. Since this is a "JUNIOR COLLEGE" I believe we have moved past needing to have someplace for the kids to play and stay out of trouble. And since it is a community college and not a university, students won't be moving away from home to move into the dorms. And to answer your final question..... there will be a college for them to travel to.

Well said retired sailor guy. Are the complainers really that stupid? Or do they just like to complain.....

Are the complainers really that stupid?----I would assume nothing about who will actually attend--it would be stupid to assume. Yes, those attending any College will required some relief from school. As to commuting students, will the roads be able to handle the extra traffic. Experiencing the current drivers on the 347 or the 2 lane Maricopa Case Grande Highway, this might be an unforseen issue by non complainers. I just hope that all will work out great for our Community.

Are the complainers really that stupid?----I would assume nothing about who will actually attend---it would be stupid to assume anything. Yes, those attending any College will required some relief from school. As to commuting students, will the roads be able to handle the extra traffic. Experiencing the current drivers on the 347 or the 2 lane Maricopa Case Grande Highway, this might be a unforseen issue by non complainers. I just hope that it will be a big success!

Mark T. get a clue man.

So far, we have two whiners complaining about nothing to do in Maricopa. So, I really hate to do this but LEAVE if it is so messed up here. Why do you stay? Otherwise, get off your ass and do something about the dismal living situation here. Run for office, use your wonderful credit to build new buildings and open some businesses. OTHERWISE SHUT UP! The other half of Maricopa Residents are happy to see some growth.

Whiners? No just resdients who remember all of the great News Stories listed on this Website. I just drove by the "future" site of the Holiday Inn Express that was to open in 2009–empty lot. Do you remember the stories of the Home Depot, Moutainside Fitness, was it Applebees or Ruby Tuesday? Then the Airport! Now that they are building the College, I just hope that they build the required support for the students. Unless you been there & done that, you have no idea what is required.

Usually I agree with your viewpoint, but why rip this article Mark? Seriously, these guys are breaking ground (unlike Home Depot, the movie theaters, Applebee's, and the Gym) not promising more blue sky projects. This can only be a good thing. Unless your glass is half empty. Maybe the building near Walmart will leased next.

I for one am very delighted about all those new constructions in Maricopa ( the Health Center by the library;
Banner Clinic and now The college "campus". with a projection of 20,000 students{is that yearly or over the lifetime of the campus?} why not planning a supporting small business instead of being so negative.

Does anybody know the Volkswagen and Nissan proving grounds have a full time staff? if so how big is the staff? or are they opened only when tests are going on? How many times a year do they conduct their proving tests?
Thanks.