Construction Updates

The following messages/alerts have been distributed through our campus e-mail system and are being posted here in an effort to inform as many as possible of construction activities that may impact the campus community.  Please check back frequently for any changes.

Posted 12/7/11

We will be closing the front entrance to the CSC Building starting at 5:30 PM today to install new flooring. Access to and from the building can be gained thru the north loading dock door or stairwells, if you require wheelchair access or other needs you will need to call Security at 7800 to use the entrance thru the Nursing area of the building. This work will be done tonight and we will be back to normal access tomorrow. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 7814 or Operations at 7800.

Posted 12/1/11

The contractor will be working tonight in the CSC Building installing more sprinkler piping in offices on the 2nd, 3rd & 4th floor from 4:00PM to 4:00 AM. This building will be in Test for this work.

Posted 11/17/11

We will be having a power outage at the Poulsbo Campus on Monday Nov. 21st at 5:00 AM, this will last for 1 to 2 hours and we should have everything back on line by 7:00 AM. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 475-7814.

Posted 11/14/11

We will be having a 2 hour power outage in the Shop and Heat Plant Buildings tomorrow Nov. 15th at 5:00 AM. Also on Wednesday the 16th we will be having a 1 hour power outage in the HSS Building at 5:00 AM. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 475-7814

Posted 11/3/11

The CSC Sprinkler contractor is working on the 4th floor at this time. They should be finished gluing the sprinkler lines by the close of business on Friday. The work on the 4th floor will continue for the next two weeks. They are installing new data and alarm wiring. Starting Monday, November 7th, the sprinkler piping crew will be working on the 2nd floor. They will be installing all the sprinkler lines and heads in the corridors and offices.

There are a lot of distractions associated with this job - smells, noise, dust, etc. We have areas set up for people to work in if they are not comfortable working in their environment. Please let us know if you would like to work in an area not affected by the construction. We will do our best to relocate whoever needs to be relocated.

Posted 11/2/11

General Parking Lot Frequently Asked Questions

Parking Lot Background

In surveys and information sessions over 10 years, students rated building a new parking lot as one of their top priorities for Olympic College. Parking has exceeded capacity because of the increase in students attending the College. Students have had difficulty finding space to park on the campus and on nearby residential streets. The funding for the new lot was part of the package that came with the new Humanities and Student Services Building. Funding for additional parking was requested from the state legislature to accommodate the increased capacity that the new building brings to campus.

How many spaces were added?

The College added a total of 249 parking stalls in the new lot including 14 ADA accessible parking stalls and 12 motorcycle stalls and 10 stalls reserved for electric vehicles. The electric vehicle stalls serve the rising number of electric cars in use within the area. A grant funded the installation of electric plug-in stations at Olympic College and at other sites across the Puget Sound region.

Why did you use so much landscaping in the parking lot?

Vegetation is one of the most effective methods to “clean” water polluted with contaminants such as oil, grease and toxic chemicals before it flows into local waterways. The solid surface of parking lots causes water to run along the top instead of absorbing into the ground. As it flows across the surface, the water picks up contaminants that spill or drip from cars and other sources. This polluted mixture flows directly into local waterways and can harm fish and wildlife, taint drinking water and impact recreational areas. To help limit pollution and reduce cleanup costs of local waters, Olympic College is leading the way to make water cleaner and safer using better designed parking lots and vegetation that filters pollution from water runoff. This natural system also has the benefit of reducing heat buildup in parking lots during the summer, buffering sound from traffic, reducing storm water over load, and looking more attractive than other pollution removal systems. In the case of the new parking lot, these systems are utilized to process runoff from a portion of Broadway Avenue and about a quarter of the Bremerton campus as well as the new parking lot itself.

During coordination efforts with the City of Bremerton and the Washington State Department of Transportation, we learned that there are plans to widen Warren Avenue. Since we did not want to waste resources constructing parking that would be demolished shortly, we planned for the widening and landscaped the impacted area with low groundcovers.

What other sustainability concerns were ddressed in the new parking lot?

The new parking lot was selected as one of a150 pilot projects throughout the United States, Canada, Iceland and Spain to develop new sustainability standards for land development, similar to the LEED system for rating the sustainability of buildings. It was one of only four parking lots in this pilot program. Special design principles were applied which include all of the items mentioned above, as well as energy efficient LED lighting, safe pedestrian routes of travel and improved accessibility.

Aren’t all of these environmental efforts expensive?

The electric charging stations and all of the sustainability consulting required for the project were provided to Olympic College free of charge.

Additionally, using functional landscaping actually saved the College the money it would have been required to spend on underground water run-off processing system if the parking lot had maximized parking with a solid paved surface.

How can the College afford to build a parking lot in this economic climate?

The parking lot was paid for out of capital funds that were included with the construction of the Humanities and Student Services building. The funds were reserved to meet students’ priority of adding new parking spaces to the campus. Since the beginning of the economic downturn, the parking lot construction has provided support to the local economy by employing community businesses and their employees in the construction.

Capital funds are separate and cannot legally be combined with operating funds which pay for the day-to-day functions of the College. Utilization of capital funds does not impact the money available for instruction, student services, or administrative services at Olympic College.

Why are there raised crosswalks on Broadway Avenue?

The at-grade crosswalk on Broadway Avenue had been identified as a potentially hazardous pedestrian crossing for years due to the high volume of traffic (both people and cars), the speed of vehicles, and the turns within the road design. The raised crosswalks on Broadway slow traffic down to posted speeds and give drivers better visibility of pedestrians. In addition, the raised crossings provide a safer and more accessible route to cross Broadway for those with disabilities and/or limited mobility. Multiple cross walks disperse the number of pedestrians crossing the street and create safer vehicle speeds on the roadway.

In addition, the College is working with the City of Bremerton on installing a new traffic signal at 13th Street and Warren Avenue. The parking lot project included the widening of 13th Street in anticipation of this future traffic signal. Once operational, this new signal will allow traffic to avoid Broadway Avenue entirely decreasing traffic congestion at the intersection of 16th Street and Warren Avenue.

I’m worried about security. How can I feel safe in the new lot?

The new lot has excellent lighting and there are two emergency call boxes installed in the area.

We recommend that you continue to take the same precautions that you would use in any parking lot at Olympic College. To protect your car and property, you should lock your vehicle and secure any valuables out of site. Walk to and from your car with others whenever possible, and be aware of activities around you. You can also call Safety and Security at 475-7800, 24 hours a day if you need a safety escort to or from your vehicle.

Posted 11/2/11

Several individuals have asked recently about the work that is being done on the landscaping of the Bremerton campus between the library and the new grassy field. I thought that I would broadcast my response so that those who have not asked but were wondering would also know what is happening. I met with Cathy Taylor about the project and she tells me that the grounds and maintenance crews are refreshing the area to make it safer, more practical, and more attractive.

After many years, the area had become overgrown and crowded. The plantings were encroaching on the walkways and the lighting was insufficient. The demolition of the old humanities building only made matters worse by preventing access and maintenance for an extended period and also by damaging the wiring for the walkway lights. Our maintenance crew has repaired the wiring and also installed a new light standard opposite the side entrance of the library. A small turnout area allow the campus carts to pass each other is also planned.

Cutting back the plantings will improve the visibility, lighting and safety. It will also give breathing space to the remaining plants so that they can be healthier and more attractive. Although some plants will be removed completely, many (including the azaleas and rhododendrons) will be left in place. Cathy is even planning on transplanting a few new low–growing plants from the old Barner property so that more people can enjoy them. She is excited about this new project, and I think that we will all be happy with the improvements.

If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me at briveland@olympic.edu, or Cathy at ctaylor@olympic.edu.

Posted 10/27/11

All - the contractors are moving along at a good pace on the sprinkler install on the 5th floor. They are working on the ceiling grid and flooring next. The sprinkler contractor will be moving to the 4th floor next week to install piping in the corridors and offices. This should only take 5 to 7 days to complete. From there they will be moving to the 2nd floor to do the same thing. When the sprinkler contractor finishes the office and corridors, they need to core-drill holes to all the balconies on all the floors in the building to install sprinklers. We don’t have a firm date on this portion of the project at this time. I will let people know when we have a schedule from the contractor. If you have any questions, please call me at (360)475-7814.

Posted 10/20/11

On Tuesday October 25th Westmark Construction will be starting at 5:00 AM doing core drilling in the CSC.

Posted 10/20/11

We will be having a 2 hour power outage on Friday October 21st at 4:30 AM to 6:30 AM in the Shop Building. Any Questions please call Ken Blankenship at 7814.

Posted 10/13/11

These will be the temporary locations of CSC 5th floor occupants until mid-December. 

5th Floor Occupants’ Temporary Locations
Date/Department			To
President’s Office
October 10th
Dr. Mitchell			HSS 202
Allison Smith			HSS 201
Student			HSS 201
HRS
October 10th
Linda Yerger			HOC 140
Judie Jose			HOC 129
Jacquie Curry			HOC 131
Annie Davis			HOC 130
LuAnn Korthanke			HOC 133
Kerry Grindinger			HOC 132
Jennifer Mislan-Ibarra			HOC 134
Ernest Dadia			HOC 123
Foundation
Move October 14th
Joan Hanten			HLB 065
Kelly Woodward			HLB 063
Christi Gregory			HLB 062
Jennifer Hayes			HLB 071
Joanie Pearson			HLB 065
Kevin Serrame			HLB 062

Posted 10/12/11

We will be having a power outage in the HSS building to work on some power meters the morning of Friday the 14th. We will start at 5:00 AM and it should take about an hour to complete. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause. You might want to turn your computer off Thursday night.

If you have any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 475-7814.

Posted 10/6/11

The CSC Sprinkler Up-Grade Project is scheduled to start on Monday October 10, 2011 on the 3rd floor of the CSC Building. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 7814 or Operations at 7800.

Posted 10/5/11

We will be having a 1 hour power outage on Monday October 10th at 8:00 AM to 9:00 AM in the PE Building and Heat plant Building. Any Questions please call Ken Blankenship at 7814.

Posted 9/29/11

Soon employees (including the President) in the CIS building will be temporarily moving to other locations on campus. This is due to a retrofit project that includes the installation of sprinklers which is necessary to bring the building up to code. I can assure you that those of us who are moving will be no happier about it than those of you whose space we might move into. Also, those physically moving equipment, furniture etc. would probably like to be doing something else. We all need to work together during this temporary disruption and practice our “VALUES”. I personally look forward to getting to know some employees better as a result of being in their work environment. I will be located in the student services conference room. I thank all of you who will be involved in and affected by this move in advance for your cooperation and commitment to our “VALUES”.

Posted 9/27/11

We are moving forward with the CSC Fire Sprinkler Upgrade Project. This project is scheduled to start October 10th on the 3rd floor. The 3rd floor will be a 1-week job to install fire sprinkler heads. Most of the work on the 3rd floor was done prior to this project. Also – during the week of October 10th (following the Columbus Day luncheon if this event affects you), we will be starting and completing the 5th floor person moves. These moves are in the planning stage with the Project Team at this time. The Project Team will be contacting the appropriate people in the near future as to when and where they will be temporarily moved. The contractor is scheduled to start the 5th floor on October 17th and is scheduled to take approximately 8 weeks. Therefore, all personnel must be moved out of the 5th floor by October 17th. The 4th floor will follow the 5th floor and the 2nd floor will be at the end of this project. These final two floors will require no person moves. There will be no moving of office furniture to other locations. “Person moves” refers to the person themselves and any pertinent paperwork that each person will need for the next 8 weeks. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship @ 7814. Sorry for any interruptions this will cause.

Posted 9/23/11

Starting next week there will be a contractor working around the exterior of the Johnson Library in Shelton cutting back the sod, moving the sprinkler heads, pouring a concrete sidewalk and slab for the new smoking shelter. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship @ 7814.

Posted 8/25/11

Starting on Monday August 29th the contractor will be starting the window replacement on the Hazelwood Library Building. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 7814 or Operations at 7800.

Posted 8/24/11

We are scheduling a 1 hour power outage for the FSB Building at the Bremerton Campus for Thursday Aug. 25th at 6:00 AM. This outage is in preparation for your Campus wide Outage on September 1st. Any questions or concerns please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 8/23/11

We have had a busy summer, with many minor projects, but there were three that have a broad impact: the new parking lot, the new open field, and the remodel of the CSC.

Parking Lot

The parking lot at the southeast corner of the Bremerton campus is nearing completion, including striping, landscaping and the addition of speed bumps. All of this is courtesy of the State’s capital fund, and does not affect the College’s operating budget at all. The Speedbumps are integrated into pedestrian crossings from the parking lot to the rest of the campus. This type of crossing is becoming popular in similar situations around the country as it creates a much safer environment for pedestrians. The city, recognizing the safety issue that used to occur when students tried to cross Broadway, had the College install the speed bumps with the parking lot. The bumps may take some getting used to, but will make the area safer for everyone.

Open Field

The old humanities building came down as part of the project to build the new HSS building. Its site will eventually be used for new construction, but in the mean time, it has been planted in grass, courtesy of the State’s capital dollars. The seed sprouted quickly, but the fence around the area will remain up until the new lawn has “knit” together to form a durable turf. In a few weeks, when the fence comes down, it should be a nice addition to the campus as a place for recreation and relaxation.

CSC Remodel

The remodel of the CSC has just started, and will continue for several months. The reason that we are doing this work now a continuation of previous work required by the City. In order to put nursing into the CSC, we had to install fire sprinklers. Sprinklers were put into the first and third floors when they were made ready for nursing. Since we modified two major systems in the building we are required to bring it up to code. Now we are fulfilling our commitment to the City to install sprinklers on the other three floors. While we have the ceilings open, we will also be installing new wiring to upgrade the building’s network systems.

At the same time, there are two small areas that are getting upgrades: IT and the fourth floor conference room. The IT area is being modified to fit current needs now that the Help Desk has moved to the third floor. The fourth floor conference room (currnetly known as 411b) is being returned to its former configuration. Half of the former conference room was walled off to provide office space for the office of institutional research. That office will be moving to the east side of the building and the conference room will be brought back to full size. Due to the removal of walls, both of these project involve asbestos removal and installation of new carpet.

Finally, there will be some modification to the exterior and entry area to help visitors and emergency personnel better identify where they are and/or need to go within the CSC.

In the end, the building will not look much different, but it will be safer and network connections will be faster. We considered doing more aesthetic work but have determined that work will need to wait until we don’t have such tight financial contraints.

While the construction continues, there will be continued inconveniences. We ask for your patience while we finish these remaining projects.

If you have questions about the construction please contact Ken Blankenship at kblankenship@olympic.edu. 

Posted 8/22/11

We are scheduling a 1 hour power outage for the Sci-Tec Building at the Bremerton Campus for Tuesday Aug. 23rd at 6:00 AM. This outage is in preparation for your Campus wide Outage on September 1st. Any questions or concerns please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 8/19/11

We will be having a power outage tomorrow Saturday the 20th in the BSC and the PE Buildings, this outage will start at 9:30 AM and last till 4:00 PM. The BSC Building will be running on the generator but there will not be lights in the BSC Gym. The PE Building will have no power or light during the outage. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship @ 7814 or Operations @ 7800.

Posted 8/1/11

We are scheduling a 1 hour power outage for the Sci-Tec Building at the Bremerton Campus for Thursday Aug. 4th at 6:00 AM. This outage is in preparation for your Campus wide Outage on September 1st. Any questions or concerns please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 7/26/11

Friday the 29th Allied will be here to replace the fire panel in the CSC Building. This will take them about 5 hours to complete and they will need to set off the alarms thru-out the building.  The building will be in test, so first responders will not respond. 

Posted 7/18/11

Each year the state allocates maintenance and operations money to the college that must be used for that purpose. Olympic College also received a large allocation of capital funds to build the humanities building, the parking lot and demolish the old building. The following is an update on the advances we have made with these funds.

New grass area
The old Humanities building has been demolished and in its place will be an open grass area with some picnic benches installed. This area is where the new CIC building has been planned to be built. However since we have not been allocated the money from the legislature, and may not until the 13- 14 fiscal year, we wanted to make a nice recreation area for the campus family to enjoy. Lighting will be installed between the new grass area and the Library as a safety and security enhancement.

Expanded Parking Capacity
The new parking lot will be finished by September 1st. It will be open to anyone who has a current OC parking permit. We now have to make Broadway a pedestrian-friendly area. In conjunction with Bremerton Public works, two ADA compliant pedestrian crossing were installed so that the Olympic College community will have a much safer way of crossing the very busy Broadway street. These crossings follow the campus master plan and line up with the future pedestrian spine that will run through the campus.

Retrofitting Fire Sprinklers
The City has required us to upgrade the fire suppression system in the CSC building. This project will include installing fire sprinklers on all floors. This project was started during the Nursing remodel and this is the year that we a required to finish the upgrades or be fined. While the floors are being worked on we will take the opportunity to upgrade the network wiring throughout the building. While the ceilings are open we will also be doing some needed HVAC and other repairs.

Patching the Leaks
The new roof on the BSC was installed because the old tile roof had failed and water infiltration was beginning to damage the substructure of the roof itself. We had received bids on replacing the roof with tile but those bids came in over $500.000. We chose to replace the roof with a good 50 year composite material at a cost of only $200.000 – a frugal use of capital funds.

With regard to capital dollars, I have been asked many times about using our capital budget dollars for wages or other operating expenses like that. Capital dollars by Washington State Legislative law can only be used for improvements to building and other assets relating to the campus. These funds, because of the way they are appropriated to the college from the state, cannot be used for any type of wages, salary or operations of the campus.

If you have any question please feel free to call me.

Bill

Bill Wilkie
Director of Facilities Services

Posted 7/14/11

Starting Monday July 25th Sabelhaus West will start work on the exterior of the Poulsbo Campus, this will include pressure washing the exterior of the building and painting some of the structural steel. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 7/8/11

The new parking lot is scheduled to be open for parking by the Fall quarter.  We will keep you updated if the schedule changes.  In anticipation, the parking lot right next to it (the student S-6 lot) will need to be closed to accomodate the utility changes occurring underneath the parking lots.  You can expect this closure to occur approximately at the beginning of August and to last for about two weeks.  Thank you for your cooperation. 

Posted 4/14/11

On Monday April 18th we will be starting the reroof of the Bremer Student Center, we are only replacing the portion of the roof that has tile on it. This project may last 6 to 8 weeks depending on the weather. Any question please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

We will be starting the demolition of the Old Humanities Building on Monday April 18th, sorry for any noise or interruption this may cause. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814 or Operations at 360-475-7800.

We will be having a power outage in Shelton tonight starting at 10:00 PM. This outage will only be in Shelton at both buildings and will last for 3 to 4 hours. If you have any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 4/5/11

We will be having a Power Outage tomorrow Wednesday April 6th at 10:20 PM. This outage is to install our power meter and should take approximately 2 hours. Any question please contact Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814 or Operations at 360-475-7800.

Posted 4/1/11

Starting Monday April 4th we will be starting the remodel in the basement of the Poulsbo Campus. Sorry for the noise we will be causing, will try to keep it down as much as possible. And questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 3/14/11

We are scheduling power outages on all campuses for the week of March 21st thru March 25th. These outages will include the following Building; BSC, HSS, Shop, Heat Plant, Poulsbo and both Building in Shelton. These outages are to install power meters to the incoming power cables. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Outage Schedule:

March 21st:
7:00am - Heat Plant 10:00am - Shop (2 meters)

March 22nd:
10:00pm - Bremer SC
12:00am - Humanities (2 meters)

March 23rd:
10:00pm - Poulsbo

March 24th:
10:00pm - Shelton (2 meters)

Posted 2/16/11

We will have power outages on Monday February 21st in the HSS, BSC and the Shop Buildings. These outages may last up to 2 hours each, at different times. We are working on our metering system up-grade. Any questions please call Operations at 475-7800 or Ken Blankenship at 360-731-2562.

Posted 12/8/10

We will have a contractor (Light Doctor) working on the parking lot and walkway lights this evening at the Poulsbo Campus, any questions please call Ken Blankenship @ 360-475-7814.

Posted 10/26/10

We will be having fire alarm testing today in the new Sophia Bremer Child Development Center Building. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship @ 360-475-7814.

Posted 10/21/10

We have contractors working in the lobby of the CSC for the rest of the week, sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 10/19/10

We will be having fire alarm testing today and tomorrow in the new Sophia Bremer Child Development Center Building. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship @ 360-475-7814.

Posted 10/8/10

The new childcare construction is coming to a close and we are expecting to  move the childcare programs into the new building by the beginning of 2011.  The advertisement for contractor bids for the new parking lot in the Southeast corner of the campus is going out on October 14th, 2010.  Bids are due on November 4th, 2010 and construction will begin shortly thereafter. 

Construction cameras will be mounted shortly in the parking lot area. 

Posted 8/30/10

Starting Wednesday morning a contractor will be working on the Clock Tower painting, this work will be thru the end of next week. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 8/30/10

I wanted to let everyone know about the progress being made on the Sophia Bremer Child Development Center. Work has been going well at the construction site just north of our Health Occupations building. We anticipate that the building will be substantially complete sometime after September. After that we will be putting in furniture and equipment so that we can start using it full time in January.

A grand opening is being planned for October 28^th. Mark your calendars and watch for further details.

Barbara M. Martin

Vice President for Administrative Services

Posted 8/30/10

Today we will have a contractor working on some carpet repairs. One in room 107 and in room 106 behind the main counter. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 8/24/10

The skylight project is almost complete on the HSS Building, tomorrow morning the crane will be here to lift the old skylights off the roof and the crew will be done replacing the flashing this week. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 8/18/10

Parking lot F-5 will be closed on Friday August 20^th for asphalt patching. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause. 

Posted 8/18/10

The skylight replacement work in the HSS Building is in process now, most of the work will be done after hours. The contractor will start on the Financial Aid side of the atrium starting today at 5:00PM. While this process if taking place the area below will be coned off. I will up-date this as the work is done. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.

Posted 8/16/10

We have a contractor working in the HSS Building, they will be replacing the skylights in the atrium area. Tomorrow the will have a crane in front of the building lifting the new skylights to the roof, and in the atrium area. This will be a two week process. For your safety please don’t walk thru any closed off work areas. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship @ 360-475-7814.

Posted 8/5/10

There will be another water outage in the CSC Building tomorrow morning and Monday morning (8-6-10 & 8-9-10) at 5AM to 7AM, this is for the contractor on the 1^st floor. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship @ 360-475-7814.

Posted 7/26/10

There will be a water outage in the CSC Building tomorrow morning from 5AM to 6AM, this is for the contractor on the 1^st floor. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.  If you have any questions, please call Ken Blankenship @ 360-475-7814.

Posted 7/16/10

Starting next week a contractor will be starting the annual maintenance pressure washing of the exterior of the Poulsbo Campus. They will also be working on the back exterior stairwell, striping and painting. This job is scheduled to last for 3-4 weeks. The contractor will be using man lifts and gas operated pressure washers, so there will be some noise involved with this job. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, any questions please call KEN Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 7/7/10

All, the closure to the CSC bathrooms has been canceled for the day.

Posted 7/7/10

The restrooms on the North side of the CSC Building on all floors will be secured tomorrow for approx. 2 hours starting at 12:00 noon. Please use the restrooms on the south end of the building. These restrooms will have closed signs on the doors. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814

Posted 6/28/10

As most of you in the HSS building know, facilities has been on a mission to re-key the campus. The purpose is to get control of the system and streamline the process of making and issuing keys. The 3^rd floor in HSS has already been re-keyed. We will now be moving to the 2^nd floor.

On July 12^th, 2010, facilities will be re-keying the 2^nd floor. This will be a combined effort between Facilities and Security. As locks are changed, a security person will be present on the 2^nd floor of HSS to receive your old key, issue a new key to that lock, and have you sign for it. The idea behind it is to have a one-stop shop for everyone to be able to spend about 5 minutes or less doing this.

If you can make it in on July 12^th, 2010, it would be easiest. However, if you cannot be here, we will ask you to please pick up your key at the Security office in the BSC once you return. They will collect your old key, issue you a new one, and have you sign for it there.

Thank you for your cooperation and continued understanding in our efforts to get the key system under control!

Rocky Wallace

475-7805

Posted 6/28/10

We have scheduled a power outage for the H.O. and U-Quad building for July 1^st at 12:30 PM thru 3:30 PM. This is for preparation for powering the new Sophia Bremer Child Development Center Building. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, any Questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 6/25/10

Starting Monday morning at 5:00 AM the fire sprinkler contractor will be installing piping on the 3^rd floor of the CSC Building. There will be noise do to the anchoring of the piping to the building. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted 6/25/10

Starting Monday June 28^th F-5 lot by the H.O./ U-Quad will be reopened.

Posted 6/25/10

Sent out by Charlotte Purl:

Name	CSC Room #
		360-475 for all
Nursing Main Line Number		7748
Geri Babbo,	CSC 331	7793
Wendy Taylor	CSC 341	7794
Bethany Mauden	CSC 341	7795
Danielle Arrant	CSC 341	7796
Chere Perrone	CSC 334	7797
Yelena Watson	CSC 325	7136
Sarah Cook,	CSC 335	7175
Anne Mariella,	CSC 324	7239
Alecia Cosgrove	CSC 329	7299
Chris Stokke	CSC 321	7313
Jan Tezak	CSC 320	7314
Jolene Culbertson,	CSC 323	7319
Minerva Holk	CSC 330	7331
Suzy Cook	CSC 327	7489
Cathy Karlson	CSC 326	7565
Anne Mulligan	CSC 332	7517
Anna Powell	CSC 319	7541
Nursing Fax	CSC 325	7628
Nursing Message		1486

Posted June 23, 2010

The loading dock on the North side of the CSC is closed due to construction in the CSC. This area will remain closed thru the summer months. The only pedestrian access from Ohio Ave must enter the Campus south of the CSC Building. Sorry for any Inconvenience this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted June 23, 2010

Starting Monday morning June 28^th, the contractor will be working on removing the walls in room 217. This work should take a few days and will cause some noise. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause. Any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted June 21, 2010

Saw cutting will begin tomorrow, June 22, 2010 at 5 am on the first floor in the College Service Center.  The saw cutting will continue until noon.  This will be the schedule for the continued saw cutting until Friday, June 25, 2010.  Please bear with us through the noise.  Anyone who has questions or needs to make arrangements, please direct them to Ken Blankenship, the Capital Projects Coordinator, at kblankenship@olympic.edu.  Thank you.

Posted June 18, 2010

Nursing Programs will be moving back to Bremerton June 22nd - 25th.  Beginning Thursday, June 24th, the Nursing Program's new phone numbers will be active.  The following chart will be all of the new phone numbers. 

Name	New Office	New Extension
Geri Babbo, Associate Dean	CSC 331	475-7793
Nursing Programs Administrative Office	CSC 341	Main Line
		475-7748
TBA		475-7794
Bethany Mauden		475-7795
Danielle Arrant		475-7796
Chere Perrone	CSC 334	475-7797
Yelena Watson	CSC 104	475-7136
Sarah Cook, Nursing Advisor	CSC 335	475-7175
Anne Mariella, RN/BSN Faculty	CSC 324	475-7239
Alecia Cosgrove	CSC 329	475-7299
Chris Stokke	CSC 321	475-7313
Jan Tezak	CSC 320	475-7314
Jolene Culbertson, RN/BSN Faculty	CSC 323	475-7319
Minerva Holk	CSC 330	475-7331
Suzy Cook	CSC 327	475-7489
Cathy Karlson	CSC 326	475-7565
Anne Mulligan	CSC 332	475-7517
Anna Powell	CSC 319	475-7541

June 17, 2010

Starting tomorrow the contractor will be starting the construction on the 1^st floor of the CSC Building. They will be fencing off the parking area on the south side of the CSC Building and the alley on the North side of the Building. There will still be access to the building thru the main entry using the elevators. This job will have times when the noise levels will be high and I will send out a reminder of when this is scheduled to happen. I’m sorry for any inconvenience this may cause, If anyone needs to move to a quieter working area please let us know, call Sam Powers @ 7811 or Ken Blankenship @ 7814. Thank you for your patience.

June 17, 2010

On Friday morning 06/18/10 a contractor will be working at Poulsbo Campus in room 221. They will be cutting a hole in the floor for a new floor box for a teachers work station. This should only take a few hours. Sorry for any noise this may cause, any question please call Ken Blankenship @ 360-475-7814.

May 21, 2010

Starting next week a contractor will be working at Poulsbo Campus at the chiller area. They will be placing a construction fence up on Tuesday which will close the sidewalk to the back of the building on the North end. This work will last for approximately 4 weeks, there will be some saw cutting and other noisy issues. Sorry for any inconveniences this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

February 24, 2010

As offices have cleared out of the old humanities building and the first and third floors of the CSC, facilities services has received many requests to repurpose furniture from the old spaces. In many cases, these moves require work by the IT crew as well.

The facilities and IT crews currently need to focus their time and energy on getting the new Humanities and Student Services building ready for the beginning of Spring quarter. The crews have a lot to accomplish before the quarter begins March 29^th. Because of this, all requests for furniture and equipment moves not directly associated with opening the new building must be delayed until after the beginning of the quarter.

To ensure that your requests are handled in a timely manner when the crews are freed up, please submit a standard work request through our on-line. Go to: http://www.olympic.edu/StaffFaculty/FacilitiesServices/ and click on “Click here for a work request”. Facilities Services and IT will coordinate with each other to complete these work orders as efficiently as possible once our top priority has been accomplished.

Thank you for your patience during this very busy period.

Barbara M. Martin

Vice President for Administrative Services

Olympic College

February 18, 2009

Now that virtually all of the offices have been moved out of the first floor of the CSC, we will start preparations for the new occupants. You should notice some activity in the next few weeks. We will make every effort to minimize the disruption that construction will cause to the remaining occupants of the CSC, but some loud noises and vibration are likely. As we progress with this project we will keep the campus apprised of our activities.

The new occupants will be the nursing program that is currently housed at our Poulsbo campus. There are many changes that will be required in order to make the space suitable for that program. In addition to the classrooms on the first floor, nursing faculty will also be in some of the offices on the third floor of the CSC. We are excited about this change as it will allow nursing students better access to resources they use regularly on the Bremerton campus.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.

Barbara M. Martin

December 11, 2009

Starting on Monday December 14^th the P.E. Building’s hot water will be secured thru the Christmas break. We are installing new water heaters as part of our energy project. We will be securing an area on the East side of the P.E. Building for the contractor the complete this work. Sorry for the inconvenience, any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 475-7814.

December 11, 2009

Starting Tuesday December 15^th we will be having building power outages throughout the campus. These outages will take approximately 2 hours depending on building. This work is part of our Energy Project. This is the schedule we have setup:
Tuesday December 15^th ; Engineering, Theater, Automotive and Library; day shift
Wednesday December 16^th ; BSC, PE; day shift
Monday December 21^st ; CSC, FSB, Sci-Tec, Business-Tech, Art-Music, and H.O; night shift (begins after 5pm)
Shop to be scheduled at a later date. 
We are not sure at this time what time each building will be shut down, I will send more information on Monday morning. Sorry for any inconveniences this may cause, any questions please call Ken Blankenship at 475-7814

September 29, 2009

The generator test has been delayed until later in October. I will keep everyone informed as I know more. We are not sure how much noise this generator makes until we start it up.

Previous message stated: On October 1^st, we will start testing the new CSC/Humanities generator. The testing will be under load and will last several hours. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

For any questions or concerns, please contact Ken Blankenship at 475-7814 or e-mail him at kblankenship@olympic.edu.

August 29, 2009

On Monday, October 5^th, we will be closing 16^th and Chester down for repaving of the road and also some work on the sidewalk. The repaving will last three weeks. During that time, students will be routed around the back to Sci-Tech.

For any questions or concerns, please contact Ken Blankenship at 475-7814 or e-mail him at kblankenship@olympic.edu.

Posted August 18, 2009

As a lot of you know we are designing a new Child Development building. The new building will be built very close to the Child Care Play Ground and it will be located on the Old Barner property. To get the building under way we have to re-locate the high voltage line that serves the U-Quad area and also will be the power for the new building. There are data lines that also have to be re-located. To get all of this accomplished we are having the contractor that is working on the Humanities building dig the trench and lay the conduit. This needs to be done this week and next because that is the window we have to turn the power off to the U-Quads for a day. To get the trench dug and get the conduits installed we will have to remove the trees that have grown up alongside the HO building. These trees are not part of the orchard that is on the property and from what we have been told by the arborist these trees appear to have been put in for a perimeter screen and were not really intended to become the trees that they are now. Their location will be the new “green” play ground for the child care center. We will be removing these trees starting tomorrow. The trees become property of the contractor, who will determine their ultimate use.

Posted July 31, 2009

In an effort to save energy and have more sustainable systems, OC conducted a thorough energy audit. Olympic College has begun its contractor work to implement findings. There are three separate areas that are affected:

1) Lighting – the lights will be changed to more efficient energy lighting. This means that you may see the Light Doctor (our lighting contractor) changing out bulbs in your area or on the many parking lots around all three campuses.

2) Plumbing – all plumbing fixtures on the campuses that use more water than necessary will be changed to low flow fixtures. This means that you may see Swift Plumbing (the plumbing contractor) changing out the fixtures and you will notice a difference in how the toilet flushes.

3) Controls – all HVAC controls which need to be upgraded will be changed to the most energy efficient, easy to use controls.

Not all fixtures or controls will be changed. It will be done to many at the College that need it, but we will not be touching the areas that do not need it.

This entire project is being worked on by contractors and our maintenance department alike. For instance, our electrician is working with Light Doctor to ensure that we are getting the maximum amount of lighting in an area while Light Doctor ensures that we are meeting the lighting requirements. In this manner, we will make sure that the college gets as much out of this as possible and we can keep it as aesthetically pleasing as possible, while still meeting the requirements.

I know change is hard, but it will require effort on all of our parts to get used to things. For instance, a low flow plumbing fixture may mean that you cannot use as much toilet paper as you once did.

In the long run, these changes will help the college to save a LOT of energy and water and the return on investment of the entire project will be no more than about 5 years (in every case) in terms of savings and usage.

Please contact us if there are any questions. As always, thank you for bearing with us!

Posted July 21, 2009

We are recycling everything we can out of the houses. This comes very close to 100% of the materials inside, outside, and of the house (we cannot recycle items with asbestos in them).

To date we have recycled 186.72 tons of concrete, 350 tons of building material, and 60 tons of vegetation. We estimate that by the time we are completed with the job we will have recycled 775 tons of concrete, 1,450 tons of building material, and 250 tons of vegetation and contaminated dirt. The totals are estimates based on what we have recycled out of the first 7 houses, but we expect it to be close.

Posted July 17, 2009

This is being written to inform you of the project happening in the housing area between Warren and Broadway and 13^th and 16^th. There have been many questions recently about what the project entails.

The first phase of the project is acquiring the houses. Every person who has sold us their house so far has initiated the contact and has wanted to sell to us. We have accommodated those in the houses as best we can for their varying situations. Currently, we have bought 23 out of 29 lots (some have more than one house on the lot).

The second phase of the project is demolishing the houses. Some of you may have noticed that some of the houses have already been demolished. This phase is happening concurrently with Phase 1. The first 7 houses that were demolished included 5 on the Warren Avenue side and 2 on the Broadway side. The next 6 houses scheduled for demolition include 5 on the Warren Avenue side and 1 on the Broadway side. We are currently in the process of doing asbestos samplings from these 6 houses to ensure the workers in the area are safe. The fencing went up for this next batch of houses today.

It is important to note that before these houses were scheduled to be demolished, they were being used by Kitsap Community Resources as homes for those transitioning back into society from various personal situations. This has given these individuals a chance to live in a house rent free but learn to pay for their utilities so that they can get jobs, get things in order, and get practice for living in a home of their own in the future (KCR has more details about this program).

In addition, after the KCR tenants have moved out, the homes become available for two different groups of people to use for different purposes. The first is Habitat for Humanity. They are given the opportunity to come into these houses and take whatever parts they think they could use for building future homes. Once this is done, the second group (the police department, fire department, and SWAT teams) are given opportunities to train in these houses for their various department needs (never with any firing of weapons involved).

The third phase of this project is to make this area a gathering area/parking lot that will be the forefront of the college (since it is the first thing people see when driving north on Warren Avenue) on the east side of the campus. I do not have a lot of details on this yet as it is still in the initial planning phases. This phase of the project is scheduled to begin in April of 2010. Both the house acquisition phase and the house demolition phases will be completed before this one begins.

I will try to keep you appraised (no pun intended) of all the housing activities as we move forward with this project.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call me at (360)475-7811.  Thank you!

Posted July 10, 2009

Beginning on Monday, July 13, 2009 we will begin the restroom upgrades. This will continue throughout the summer. The expectations should include that there will be restroom closures and outages due to the upgrades. We will notify which restrooms at what times will be closed so that you may plan accordingly. If you have any questions please contact Ken Blankenship at 360.475.7814 or kblankenship@olympic.edu.

Posted June 26, 2009

As of today, the entrance to SEAC is now open.  The ADA ramp is still in work and users will need to go through the library until it is finished on August 3rd, 2009.  As always, thank you for your continued cooperation. 

Posted June 8, 2009

Please be advised that construction on the Bremerton campus has blocked the accessible entrance to the Student Entry and Advising Center (SEAC) through early August. Persons with mobility limitations who are unable to use the stairs are asked to enter SEAC through the library’s main entrance, and library staff will escort them to the SEAC.  For more information or to pre-arrange access please contact the SEAC at 475-7230. If the library is closed, contact the SEAC at 475-7230 or Security at 475-7800. 

Posted May 20, 2009

The red stakes that some of you may see under the large tree in front of the Library and the tree by the front of the Sci-Tech building are "lay-out" stakes that surveyors use for positioning points. There will not be any construction happening in these areas. As soon as the surveyors have completed their job they will remove the stakes. I have been assured that they will not affect the trees in any way. If you have questions, please feel free to call me.  Thanks to everyone that has called or e-mailed me with questions.

Posted May 10, 2009

Many of you may have noticed by now that the Student Entry and Advising (SEAC) entrance is blocked off for construction reasons.  This started two weeks ago and will be completed in approximately one month. 
The construction of the Humanities building is on schedule and is going well. 
The acquisition of housing for the parking lot between Broadway and Warren is going as scheduled and as smoothly as can be expected. 
As always, thank you for your patience as you bear with us through all of the inconveniences. 

Posted March 13, 2009

This is being sent out to notify you of a partial street closure. There will be a crane arriving on Monday, March 16^th to install the A/C unit on top of the new Humanities building and to raise the clocktower. This will require the crane to be in part of 16^th Street throughout the day. Therefore, the section of 16^th Street that is along the construction fence will be closed for the day. Students, staff, and residents to the East of Olympic College will need to use the parking lot as a throughput. It will only be closed Monday, March 16^th for the day and will be re-opened on Tuesday, March 17^th.

In addition, we wanted to update the campus on the roofing/tar situation. We realize that it is an inconvenience to many, but there are parameters that must be met before the tarring will be completed. The roofers need dry weather (less than 30% chance of rain) and they need the temperature to be above 40 degrees. We have been told that the roofers need 20 days of this type of weather before the roof is complete. As you can imagine, it may take longer than initially thought with upcoming weather. Please bare with us as we work to complete this part of the project as quickly as we can.

Please pass this on to all who may be affected by this.

Posted February 1, 2008
As printed in the Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce

Olympic College tops off humanities building

By JOURNAL STAFF

Olympic College recently topped off its Humanities and Student Services Building at 1600 Chester Ave. in Bremerton. General contractor Pease & Sons today is planning to set HVAC units on the building's roof.

When finished in November, the 80,000-square-foot building will house the humanities department and consolidate all student services into one location. It will have general purpose classrooms, distance learning classrooms, faculty offices and a counseling center.

The exterior of the three-story structural steel building will be clad in brick veneer with aluminium composite panels and metal siding.

The project includes a new campus entrance and plaza. Construction costs are estimated at $20.5 million.

Portland-based Yost Grube Hall Architecture is the lead architect and Bremerton-based Rice Fergus Miller Architecture and Planning is the supporting architect.

The design team includes Notkin Engineering (mechanical), KPFF Consulting Engineers (structural), SvR Design (civil and landscape) and Green Building Services (LEED consultant).

YGH's team includes Ned Vaivoda, John Blumthal, Tim Cowan and Adonica Marshall. The team at Rice Fergus Miller is headed up by Ron Easterday.

Major subcontractors include Rohwein Electric, Coastal Steel (structural steel erector), United Iron (structural steel fabricator), Axiom Construction & Consulting (metal panels and siding), Keystone Masonry, McDonald & Wetle (roofing), Harris & Hart (duct work), D.L. Hendrickson Construction (metal stud and structural framing, drywall installer), Bedrock Construction (earthwork), Specialized Landscaping, Kell-Chuck Glass and Pease Piping (plumbing).

Tacoma-based Pease & Sons is also handling concrete work. Pease's team includes project manager Dan Ritter, project engineer Paul Pearson and superintendent Pat Bell.

Posted January 27, 2009

We will be closing Chester Avenue starting the afternoon of January 28, 2009 for crane operations on the Humanities construction site. Traffic will be re-routed through the S-4 parking lot.  Chester Avenue will be reopened on January 30, 2009. 

Posted January 12, 2009

We are now looking at closing the Chester Avenue entrance the week of January 26^th. We will send out a follow up e-mail prior to this closure.

Posted January 9, 2009

If you are wondering about the flags strewn about near the humanities construction site and by the Health Occupations building, those are the flags that have been put up by our architects to mark the utility lines underground.  This was done so that we do not hit any lines while digging around the Sophia Bremer Child Development Center site underground.  Please feel free to let us know if any come loose in the current weather.  As always, thanks for your patience and understanding! 

Posted November 5, 2008

There has been some concern expressed about the welfare of the trees along the South side of Roosevelt Field (across the street from the Sci/Tech building). A trench has been dug next to the trees, and many roots have been cut and removed. The concern is natural as trees along the west side of Roosevelt field (across from the building under construction) were removed after trenching occurred there. In that case, the trenching was performed to accommodate utility and street construction as well as the temporary sidewalk. It resulted in damage or removal of most of the trees’ root mass. When construction is complete, new trees will be planted to replace the ones that were removed.

The new trenching is very different. The trench there has been dug to provide irrigation to the hedge and grass strip adjacent to the trees. During the construction of the Science and Technology building, this area was used for construction trailers, and the irrigation is part of the rehabilitation of the landscaping. The trees are expected to survive, and will benefit from the irrigation as well. As part of our ongoing commitment to maintaining and improving the campus’ green space, a licensed landscape architect will be out to examine the situation and assure that the trees have not suffered undue damage.

Posted September 12, 2008

We are writing to tell you that work is progressing as scheduled on our new Humanities and Student Services building and the new entry to the campus. We have construction meetings every Tuesday where we receive updates and schedules from the contractor, Pease and Sons. At this time, one can begin to see the footings being placed, and next week, concrete floors will be poured. Steel erection will begin on September 29^th. During the steel erection and for some time to come, there will be cranes and heavy equipment on site. This heavy equipment may cause some vibrations, but the vibrations will be on a smaller scale than those that you have experienced while we were placing the foundations.

Chester Avenue between 16^th and 18^th will be re-opened by September 22^nd, 2008. The road will be paved by September 19^th, 2008. Please keep in mind that this surface is only the first stage in the resurfacing process. As there will be heavy equipment running on top of it until the completion of the project, we will only put a primary surface down and then do the final resurfacing touches once the building project is completed and there is no more heavy equipment.

We will continue to keep you informed as construction proceeds.

As always, thank you for your continued patience. 

Posted August 14, 2008

The construction of the new entry area for the Bremerton campus has created a barrier between Roosevelt Field and the central area of the campus. The resulting confusion has frustrated students, staff and faculty, but will fortunately be short-lived. The pathway North of the Science and Technology building that is currently closed (the one between Science-Technology and 16^th) is scheduled to be opened to pedestrian traffic before September 22^nd (weather permitting).   In the mean time, those parking in Roosevelt Field will need to continue to walk around the Physical Education building, and between the Science and Technology Building and the Bookstore. Alternately, pedestrians can gain entry to the central spine through the BSC’s Eastern entry.

Eventually, the construction will provide a more useful, attractive and safer main entry to the Bremerton campus. In the mean time, we hope that you can bear with the inconveniences.

Posted August 13, 2008

The city of Bremerton is scheduling a water shutoff on Friday August 15, 2008 that will impact several buildings on campus. The buildings included in the shutdown are: The Library, University Quads, Health Occupations, Science Tech and Physical Education. The shutdown is expected to begin at 8:00 AM with water restored by 4:00 PM.

Posted August 6, 2008

As some of you have noticed, the trees in front of the library have been taken down. The reason for this is because these trees, according to our landscape architect, were diseased due to improper installation. Part of the construction of the new Student Services/Humanities Building includes the replacement of these trees with trees more congruent with the campus aesthetic. We will be sure to plant the replacements correctly. In an earlier email and later in a construction update, I noted that the trees would be affected by the construction, but I was not specific about the manner in which they would be affected. I’m sorry I was not clear that the trees would actually be replaced.

Facilities Services will shortly embark on a process of developing a landscaping plan for the Bremerton campus in keeping with the campus master plan. It is our goal to improve the appearance and benefit of the grounds. The campus master plan currently calls for a green central core with planted parking areas on the perimeter of the campus. If you are interested in seeing the master plan, a model and plan view are currently on display in the basement of the Library.

Posted August 1, 2008

We have been informed by the City of Bremerton that on Tuesday, August 5^th, the water in Sci/Tech and PE Buildings will be temporarily shut off between the hours of 9:00 am and 4:00 pm. Once the water has been restored, Facilities will open the outside taps and flush the lines for a few minutes. If you should have discolored water inside one of these buildings please turn the faucets on and let them run for a minute or two. If you continue to experience problems please call Facilities at ext. 7810

Posted July 25, 2008 

   The entry to the SEAC building is under construction to improve its usability and appearance. During this awkward period the SEAC area will only be accessible through the basement of the library. Wayward signs are being made and will be put up next week to help students and visitors find their way during the confusion.     
    The entire front section will be fenced off, including about half of the lawn in front of the library. The maples, light poles, and flag pole will all be affected during this construction. The smoking shelter will not be affected, and we will take special actions to protect the giant sequoia. An orange safety fence will be placed around the sequoia to protect it’s fragile root system. 
    Please honor the construction and safety fences. Construction is anticipated to last a minimum of three months, commencing July 28, 2008.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact Ken Blankenship at 360-475-7814.

Posted July 23, 2008

I am writing to confirm that the Geopier installation has been completed. There will still be vibrations felt as compacting will continue for approximately a month. We understand that this will be felt in some areas of the surrounding neighborhood, and appreciate your forbearance. We apologize in advance for any disruption. The concrete trucks are scheduled to start arriving at the beginning of next week.

The sidewalk on the North side of the Science Tech building will be closed starting tomorrow, July 24, 2008. You will need to walk around the back side of the building to get to the campus grounds.

Posted July 3, 2008

Work has begun regarding the Geopier installation. This is to confirm that installation is scheduled to start at 7:00 am and continue to approximately 10:00 pm. We have run into a snag, however, with a drill bit. Therefore, our new completion time is scheduled for Friday, July 11, 2008.  We understand that this is being felt in some areas of the surrounding neighborhood, and appreciate your forbearance. We apologize in advance for any disruption.

As with our previous work, the City’s noise ordinance will be in effect. This means that the contractors may only use their equipment between the hours of 7:00 AM and 10:00 PM.

We will also be closing 16^th and Chester Ave, starting July 7, 2008 for an undetermined amount of time. Traffic will be re-routed through the parking lot.

If you have questions or concerns about the construction, you can email me at: kblankenship@olympic.edu, or call the Facilities Department at: (360)475-7810.

Posted May 21, 2008

We had our first construction meeting for the new Humanities building yesterday, May 20, 2008. At this meeting, we received a tentative two-week schedule from the contractors. You will begin to see trailers and the contractors will be setting up a temporary generator until they can hook up power from the campus. This may create some noise, but not an exceeding amount.

The first step of the construction process is to test the grounds for capability to hold a building. This means that there will be vehicles that will roll over the dirt while vibrating to ensure that the soil will not shake loose. The vibrations are scheduled to begin on May 30, 2008 and will last until June 6, 2008 during working hours. Please take note that this means there will be noise and vibrations during this week of construction.

The noise ordinance will be in affect. This means that the contractors will have none of their equipment on between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.

We will continue to keep you informed as any other construction updates that will affect the campus arise.

Posted May 6, 2008

The electrical loop repairs were completed April 27th, 2008.  All codes and regulations are now being met and the contractors worked hard to ensure that this was fixed before any major outages occurred. 

The new Humanities building contract was awarded to Pease & Sons, Inc.  Construction will begin next week.  As always, the CSC Web Cam will be working and will be filming the construction throughout the entire process. 

As you can see now, the camera is currently pointing more towards the library side of the construction site.  The reason for this is the HUMANITIES GROUNDBREAKING that is taking place on May 8th, 2008 at 3 pm.  All are welcome, and if you cannot make it out, you are welcome to watch the groundbreaking on the CSC Cam. 

Thank you for your continued patience and cooperation!

Posted January 15, 2008

Last power outage…………for a long while we hope.

This outage will only effect the Bremerton campus.

Next weekend we will be finishing the repairs to the electrical loop. There will be work done on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, but only two days will involve power outages.

Saturday, January 19^th - Work will be done on 2 switches, but there will be no outages.

Sunday, January 20^th – There will be an outage lasting 2 – 3 hours that will affect the CSC, Humanities, Health Occupations and U-Quad buildings.

Monday, January 21^st – There will be an all day power outage for the Bremer Student Center only.

By taking advantage of the holiday we are hoping to minimize the impact these outages will have on the campus community. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call or write.

Thanks and have a great weekend!

Posted December 31, 2007

In early December, OC submitted three capital project requests for funding beginning in the 2009-2011 biennium. These requests are consistent with the college’s updated master plan. The requests were as follows:

Replacement

College Instructional Center

Replace the existing Art, Music and Theater buildings with 75,000 square foot building that includes space for the programs currently housed in these buildings, as well as multi-media and health occupation programs.

Renovation

Shop Building

Renovate the Shop building, adding 6,000 square feet. The renovated facility will house welding, technical design, electronics and possibly a baking program.

Matching

Sophia Bremer Child Development Center

Build a new 10,000 square foot Child Development Center. This project is a partnership with the Bremer Trust

On December 19^th and 20^th, a group with representation from colleges throughout the State, as well as the SBCTC met to rate the 59 project requests submitted by community and technical colleges. They were ranked for each of the four project categories: Replacement, Growth, Renovation and Matching. This is the first of many steps leading to a ranked statewide community and technical college project list for consideration by the Governor in developing her 2009-2011 capital budget proposal, and ultimately consideration by the Washington State Legislature for inclusion in the final 2009-2011 capital budget.

OC’s three projects fared very well in this initial ranking:

Replacement – number 3 of 23 projects submitted

Renovation – number 4 of 14 projects submitted

Matching – number 3 of 13 projects submitted

Growth – 9 projects submitted, none by OC

Next the SBCTC Capital Budget Task Force will develop a capital budget proposal that will ultimately be submitted to the State Board. Once adopted, it will be forwarded to the Office of Financial Management for their review prior to developing the governor’s 2009-2011 Capital Budget Proposal.

The SBCTC Capital Budget Task Force will be looking at projects “in the pipeline” (design funds approved in current or earlier capital budgets), and determine how many projects in each of the four categories will be included in their recommendation to the State Board. They will consider past budget requests, actual funding levels, and reasonableness based upon the current economic outlook.

In summary, at this time OC’s projects are positioned well for inclusion in the 2009-2011 capital budget. I will keep the OC community informed as this process progresses.

Many thanks to the OC staff and faculty who have helped with the update to the Facility Master Plan and our three capital project requests.

Posted December 13, 2007

This message concerns the entire campus.

During recent construction we discovered some major issues within our primary electrical loop. These issues are significant to the point that repairs need to be done quickly and in a controlled environment before the real load of Winter hits, If we wait until then we risk experiencing a more catastrophic, unplanned outage that could have significant consequences.

The good news is; that we did find the problem before a major outage occurred. The bad news is; we have to create some planned, controlled outages in order to complete the repairs.

So, after much grappling with schedules, vendors and parts delivery issues – here is the schedule:

Saturday & Sunday, Dec. 22^nd&23^rd - Power will be shut down to the CSC, Humanities, Theater, Health Occupations, and University Quads. All day - both days.

Sunday, Dec. 30^{th -} The entire campus will be shut down for the whole day. All day means from 7am until 6 pm or later.

There will be a scheduled shut down of the BSC on a Sunday later in January once the remainder of the parts arrive. The rest of the work will not require any outages.

Hopefully there will be minimal impact to the campus. We have tried to schedule this so that you won’t even notice the work being done J

As always, Thank-You and if you have any concerns or questions please give me a call or send me an e-mail.

I wish you all of the Best this Holiday Season!

Posted November 5, 2007

The Demo is going well and the Contractors are on schedule. Here are just a few updates to that project:

1) The sidewalk….. it was discovered that the concrete sidewalk on Chester had numerous cracks in it so this weekend we asked the Contractor to pour an asphalt sidewalk above the tree line, parallel to the existing walk. The new sidewalk is level and smoother for pedestrian safety.

2) Trees… Yes, the trees on site are scheduled to be removed. The two Poplar trees on the North side of the Haselwood Library have rooted into our electrical vaults and it was discovered on Friday that the trees are hollow on the inside. They are rotten to such an extent that a professional logger refused to climb the tree to log it for safety reasons. Tomorrow another logging company with a bucket truck will be on-site to remove the trees.

3) Trucks… For the next several days, there will be a steady stream of trucks removing concrete. I would like to ask again that people be extra attentive when negotiating that area. We have assigned a Security Guard to the area to help get the trucks in and out and the people across the street safely. With the new sidewalk, we hope that will be an easier task. There is still NO PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC ALLOWED down the fence line. This is a potentially dangerous thing to do with concrete being loaded and the traffic in general. Please be careful.

Thank-you for your patience and your interest. The response to the ‘Updates’ has been very positive and I appreciate the continued interest in your campus community!

Posted October 23, 2007

Today, at about 10 am, you should see some light demolition begin on the Math-Science building. Heavier demolition will begin around noon, barring any complications. 

Posted October 18, 2007

OC Poulsbo is going well and they are still about 3-4 weeks ahead of schedule. Completion should be around Thanksgiving, barring any surprises along the way…

Playground is complete and the kids and staff are really enjoying it.

The Early Utilities project is wrapping up and Sound Excavating should be gone by Friday.

Demolition of Math-Science building. Titan Earthworks will be on site as early as Friday to begin set-up. At this point demo is scheduled to begin on Monday, October 22. If this date changes, I will let you know. The actual demolition will take 2-3 days. The remainder of the time (20-25 days) will be spent hauling away debris.

One thing you may not know – after the building is down we will be removing an underground storage tank from the site. This tank was abandoned and filled (with concrete) as required by the EPA many years ago. It was used to store heating oil. Soil samples of the site are being monitored, and if there has been any contamination of the surrounding soil, it will be removed and replaced with clean fill dirt. This type of tank abandonment was common at the time and this is nothing extraordinary, nor should it pose any sort of hazard to the campus community. Be assured that we are being extremely diligent in our efforts to remove it safely and keeping a very close watch on what, if any, effects this tank and its contents may have had on the surrounding soils.

With regards to the demolition of the building itself; we realize that this is going to be the noisiest and dirtiest project to date and with its close proximity to other buildings we have tried to set a few things in place to mitigate concerns and alleviate some of the stress:

We have contracted with an Environmental Health and Safety company to monitor air quality on site during the demolition. There will be 3 air monitoring devices and an environmental technician on site during the entire project. They will be watching respirable dust levels and can help the contractor monitor their efforts to keep those down to a minimum.

We have purchased several portable air “scrubbers” or filters for those in the area who feel the air in their building/office is too dusty due to construction. Some have already been distributed.

We have set up 3 temporary computer stations in the Plan Room (#209) at FSB for anyone who is being effected by noise or vibration. For those with laptops, wireless access is also available in this building and several others on campus, contact Tom Jacobs for more info.

We will also be reorienting the webcam so that you can watch the demo progress, that link is http://apps.olympic.edu/webcams/camCSC.htm . This site takes a moment to come up, so please be patient.

I hope this answers a lot of your questions but if not, please give me a call or send me an e-mail. Also, If you have any other viable ideas on how to lower the Demo Distress level, please let me know. (Keep in mind.. I said “viable” ideas J)

Thank-you for your patience, your positive attitude and your time.

(NOTE: When I say “We” on the bullet items, I really mean our crew here in Facilities, IT and the Communications department. Thank-you for all of your help in getting these things set up. It is a pleasure to work with all of you!)

Posted October 11, 2007

Due to the re-striping of 16^th and Chester per the City of Bremerton in preparation for Humanities construction, we are experiencing several potentially hazardous situations on those roads.

People are still stopping in the lanes to drop off/pick-up students and this is causing back-ups and near misses. Drivers are not following the lane changes and again, we are having a few close calls each day. Remember, these are City owned roads and drivers are subject to the same rules/regulations and potential moving and parking violations as any other City street.

PLEASE help us inform the students that the only drop off area on that road is the corner at 16^th & Chester, Eastbound, next to the red curb. All other parking and stopping on those lanes is no longer allowed. We would like to encourage people to use the entrances at 13^th & Chester (in front of the FSB), 15^th & Lincoln (the SW corner of Humanities, South side of Theater) or 15^th & Broadway (behind the BSC) for drop off and pick up of students.

I know that adjusting to change can take time, I would just like to try and keep people safe during the process. Anything you can do to help spread the word is appreciated.

Posted September 25, 2007

Due to the construction fencing that will be put in place for the new Humanities building, we are being asked by the City of Bremerton to make some traffic revisions to 16^th St. and Chester Avenue. Making these revisions will allow us to maintain two-way traffic along Chester during construction. This will benefit our students and be much appreciated by the residents north of the College. Unfortunately these changes will result in the loss of street parking along both roadways, including the new street parking next to Sci-Tech.

On Saturday, October 6^th (weather permitting) we will begin re-striping the road from 16^th and Broadway, West to Chester Ave, and along Chester, North to 17^th (past the student lot). Between now and then, our Grounds crew will begin installing a multitude of signs along that route that will remain covered until the striping is done. After the striping is complete, the fence goes up and the signs are uncovered.

I know that this is going to be a frustration for several of you and we apologize for the inconvenience.

Please do not hesitate to give me a call if you have any questions.

Posted September 1, 2007

The Good News:

The Facilities Services data room cooling project is complete and the servers located there are enjoying the consistently cool temperatures. Design work is under way to do the same for the B-100 data room.

The OC Shelton HVAC project is complete and staff were able to move back into their office spaces on Monday 8/27.

The CSC bathroom project is complete with the exception of some new light fixtures that we have been waiting on; should happen within the next 7 days. When our contractor comes back to install those he will replace some chipped tiles and address a few other small issues, but otherwise they are functioning beautifully.

The Playground project will be completed next week and the licensing inspector will be onsite Thursday, 8/30. The kids could be on their new playground as early as that afternoon! Check out the playground next week – it is really beautiful.

The Bremer Student project is going well and will be completed in plenty of time for Opening Days. A side note – we were able to get some HVAC modifications done for the Security Office at the same time so they might be breathing a little easier now.

OC Poulsbo construction has had some challenges, but seems to be moving along well. With the help and cooperation of some amazing staff, the contractor is on-time. The initial phase will be done just prior to the beginning of Fall quarter and the Student Services area will be done in December. It is an ambitious project.

The abatement of the Math-Science building has been completed.

The Sci-Tech building is nearing the end of its punch list and the art work Is scheduled to be installed.

Okay, for those of you still reading – here is the Bad News…

With the asbestos abatement completed on the old Math-Sci, the Gate II sculpture relocated and plans to remove the mural in place, we have begun work on the Early Utilities project:

This project will take the Math-Sci building off-line from all utilities and begin to set in place the infrastructure needed for the new Humanities building. For lack of a better term, this project is going to be “messy”. It involves lots of digging and relocating utilities. Although we have done everything in our power to locate what is underground, we do not have solid historical utility data for that area and there could be some surprises. Again, we have done everything we can to minimize issues during the ‘discovery’ phase of this project and if all goes just as planned, the only disruption to the campus at this point will be some noise and dust. You will notice digging around all sides of the building and some behind the PE building as we get ready to transfer over the QWEST line. There will also be some digging in front of the HO building as we upgrade the sewer and water lines to that building and the University Quad.

o Towards the end of this project the contractor will begin setting up the temporary/permanent fencing that will be the construction site for the new Humanities building. This fencing, like the one for Sci-Tech will extend into the street and will be with us for about 2 years.

o Once the fence is up, demo of the old building will begin.

o Then, on to Humanities construction and Campus Entry Phase I….

Besides all of that, Facilities staff are working on a myriad of projects that include painting, signage improvements at OC Shelton and Poulsbo and many other modifications and maintenance related issues. It is a busy Summer !

There are some exciting things going on, but these changes do not happen without some disruption and inconvenience to the campuses. We are so grateful for the supportive attitude and the flexibility of the OC community in dealing with all of this ~ Thank-You !

If you have any questions or concerns regarding any of these capital projects, please do not hesitate to contact myself or Bill Wilkie directly. If you have questions on any of the maintenance items I mentioned, please contact Samantha Powers @ 7811.

Posted 8/31/2007

        
        After a lot of preparation, the mural has been saved and moved.   As you can see from the pictures below, the preparation consisted of separating the wall, setting up support beams, and carefully sawing into thirds.  Hooks were set up on each third in grout points so as to protect the integrity of the mural.  
        On the day of moving, August 31st, the hooks were used to hoist the first third away from the rest of the mural.  The mural was then laid on its side and put onto the back of the truck.  This process took about two hours, and the second third was started immediately after that.  It is currently being temporarily stored until a permanent place for it is decided.  
        As always, thank you for your patience and support in this matter.   

  
 

Posted 5/24/2006

Weather permitting; the Science-Tech contractor will be pouring large batches of concrete on June 2 & 13th. Each pour will start at 7:00am with a cement truck every 15 minutes thereafter. Each pour will last approximately 3-4 hours. The contractor will be placing a cement pumping truck inside his fencing in front of the Library building across from the smoking shelter. The cement trucks will be staged along 16^th avenue inside the fenced area but will be using the Chester & 16^th corner to maneuver to and from the pump truck. Throughout the morning, as each empty truck leaves and a new one arrives, the contractor will have flaggers stopping traffic and detouring pedestrians.

As a point of interest, the pour on June 2^nd is 350 cubic yards of concrete making it the largest single pour to date.

Pop Quiz:

Approximately how many lineal feet of 4” thick by 3’ wide sidewalk could be poured with 350 cubic yards of concrete?

The first person emailing me back the correct answer (within 100’ plus or minus) wins an Olympic College “Safety First” T-shirt compliments of Facilities Services.

Please post this or pass along to students and staff who may not otherwise receive this notice.

As always, thanks for your patience and good luck on the quiz.

Posted 4/26/2006

The Science-Tech contractor will be pouring large batches of concrete on May 3, 8, & 12. Each pour will start at 7:00am with a cement truck every 15 minutes thereafter. Each pour will last approximately 3 hours. The contractor will be placing a cement pumping truck inside his fencing in front of the Library building across from the smoking shelter. The cement trucks will be staged along 16^th avenue inside the fenced area but will be using the Chester & 16^th corner to maneuver to and from the pump truck. Throughout the morning, as each empty truck leaves and a new one arrives, the contractor will have flaggers stopping traffic and detouring pedestrians.

As a side note, both the Science-Tech and the Bookstore/Student Center projects are on schedule and within budget.

As usual… we are making noise, causing detours, impacting your parking, breaking waterlines, killing the power and generally making your lives miserable… all in the name of progress. Just keep in mind… it will all be over soon. Okay… so as soon as Science Tech is done we will start on Humanities… but after THAT it will be over. Well except for the old Humanities demolition and the new parking structure it will be done.

Please post this or pass along to students and staff who may not otherwise receive this notice.

As always, thanks for your patience.

Posted 2/6/06

Regarding the geopier installation today...

The Geopiers are installed with a moderate size hydraulic hammer that would typically be used to break up concrete. The noise is a typical construction jobsite noise, but it is loud. At the source the noise level is about 100 decibels. We will use a noise blanket or jacket on the hammer. The noise is loud on the jobsite and will definitely be heard in the library and throughout much of the campus. However, the noise dissipates with distance and should not be very disturbing. In the bookstore building, the noise will be disturbing on the other site of the wall from the work area.

Vibration should not be a problem. The vibration is evident at the impact location but dissipates rapidly with distance. At only 5 to 10 feet from the impact point the vibration is greatly reduced and minimal. At 50 feet it would not be noticeable. On the Science and Tech site, the vibrations are not an issue. At the bookstore vibrations may be felt in the building during installation of only several of the Geopiers that are immediately adjacent to the building. These Geopiers will be constructed quickly and should not be a problem. We can install these piers at a specified time if desired.

We do not expect that the work will cause any disturbance or adverse effect on the landscape. The only potential impact would be the destruction of roots during drilling. Unless the landscape is located very close to the Geopier locations, this should not be an issue.

Posted 2/1/06

The Geopier installation scheduled to begin this week has been postponed until February 6^th; the Geopier contractor is finishing up a project in Utah. In addition, in response to our concern over the noise issue and after consulting with an acoustician, the General Contractor and the Geopier sub-contractor had a custom made sound absorbing blanket manufactured to fit over the “head” of the ram driver. This will not eliminate the noise, but it will mitigate it to the extent possible.

This Saturday, February 4^th there will be a total power outage in the Library and PE building. This outage is required as part of the Science-Tech project and has been scheduled on Saturday to minimize the disruption to normal campus activity.

Facilities Services personnel will work with the general contractor and the high voltage specialist and power will be restored by Saturday afternoon.

Posted 1/27/06 

The Science-Tech contractor unearthed some asbestos containing building material; about 200’ of abandoned cement asbestos water pipe. In its present form, it does not pose a health hazard however it does meet the minimum criteria to require a permit for abatement.

The abatement will be done by Correctional Industries and will start on February 8^th.

Posted 1/26/06

I have good news and bad news…

The bad news is both the contractor for the Bookstore and the contractor for the Science-Tech building will be installing “Geopier Rammed Aggregate Piers” beginning the February 1^st or 2nd.

What is a Geopier Rammed Aggregate Pier?

A Geopier Rammed Aggregate Pier is a stiff and highly densified inclusion of rammed crushed aggregate that is installed by drilling a 24-inch to 36-inch diameter hole and ramming thin lifts of well-graded aggregate within the hole. The drilled holes typically extend 10 to 25 feet below grade and 7 to 20 feet below footing bottoms. The first lift of aggregate forms a bulb below the bottoms of the piers, thereby pre-stressing and pre-straining the soils to a depth equal to at least one pier diameter below drill depths. Subsequent lifts are typically about 12 inches in thickness. Ramming takes place with a high-energy beveled tamper that both densifies the aggregate and forces the aggregate laterally into the sidewalls of the hole. This action increases the lateral stress in surrounding soil, thereby further stiffening the stabilized composite soil mass.

If you want more information regarding Geopiers, visit http://www.geopiers.com/index.asp?id=11

The “ramming” process is loud and obnoxious and, if all goes as planned, will last 3-4 days. We are limited in our ability to mitigate the disruptions from this type of activity. We are presently working with the contractors to install sound blankets in an attempt to drive the noise up rather than out and have requested they concentrate their activities into the shortest duration possible. To that end, the Geopier installer will work both sites simultaneously.

The good news? The good news is that once this activity is complete we will have the worst part behind us. That’s not to say there will not be any more disruptive activities, but this is by far the worst.

And remember… we are making noise, causing detours, impacting your parking, breaking waterlines, killing the power and generally making your lives miserable… all in the name of progress.

Please post this or pass along to students and staff who may not otherwise receive this notice.

             As always, thanks for your patience.

Posted 1/24/06

A new detour…

Due to construction requirements the contractor for Science-Tech needs to extend the current fence line. It will now encompass the portion of sidewalk that people have been using to get from the main entrance at 16th & Chester to the Humanities building.

In order to compensate for this loss of sidewalk they are going to put in a temporary asphalt walkway. However, in order to accomplish that they need to extend the current fence line out even further, requiring people to use the sidewalk in front of the Haselwood Library. This is for ONE DAY ONLY, tomorrow, January 25th. The new walkway should be ready for use on Thursday.

Posted 1/18/06

The good news is that they are almost through with the demo of the bookstore; the noisiest part of that work should be completed by tomorrow afternoon. There might be some occasional loud noises throughout the construction, but these should be intermittent and on a much smaller scale.

More about those occasional loud noises…..

The contractor will mobilize on the 1st of February and begin installing geopiers on the 2nd or 3rd. This requires a pile driving machine but will only be a one day process once they begin. We are doing everything we can to minimize the noise, including installation of sound blankets. We will also send out a reminder to ALL the day before they actually begin setting the piers.

We are VERY aware that all of this construction is having an effect on students, staff and faculty and cannot emphasize enough how much we appreciate your tolerance and understanding.