City College career complex gets a dramatic design

Steinberg Hart, Flint Builders, for $112 million project

SAN JOSE >> A new Career Education Center at San Jose City College is getting a striking design from famed architect Steinberg Hart and Flint Builders.

The project will create a careers- oriented center at San Jose City College that will consist of a new, 85,000 square-foot building and the renovation of an existing 40,000-square-foot building.

“The idea is to give students more tools to join the workforce,” said Katia Mcclain, a managing principal executive with Steinberg Hart’s San Jose office.

The Career Education Center is slated to cost $112 million.

“The complex is aimed at more workforce development,” said Rob Barthelman, a principal executive with Steinberg Hart. “The idea is to really drive student success in workforce development, career education, getting students into the workforce successfully.”

The center is described as the “flagship project” of a $748 million bond program authorized by voter approval of Measure X that will fund capital improvement projects in the San Jose — Evergreen Community College District.

The new building will contain classrooms, computer labs, offices, student support spaces, social spaces and food services.

Program-specific labs focused on medical, business and information technology disciplines will also be available in the new center.

The adjacent building’s upgrade will modernize the existing structure and extend its useful life. The older building already contains industrial labs and classrooms.

The two buildings will be linked through a cross-yard connection.

The construction project, slated to occur in phases, will begin in June 2021. At present, the completed center is due to be delivered to the college district by 2024.

The new complex also might bolster the efforts by both of the colleges in the San Jose — Evergreen college district to appeal to an array of tech companies in the vicinity, such as Google, Adobe and Cisco.

“This can create a connection to local industry, a partnership, and awareness that community colleges are valuable and available for the entire community,” McClain said.

San Jose City College will be able to use the new center to create a more wellrounded and holistic approach to education that connects an array of disciplines, according to Steinberg Hart.

That sort of approach reflects the increasingly interconnected world of industry that has emerged in recent years.

The new project also bolsters an ongoing strategy of Steinberg Hart, executives said.

“This project aligns with Steinberg Hart’s long-term focus on higher education, exemplifying the positive impact of community colleges in the workplace and current and developing industries, and reflecting the evolution of career education,” Barthelman said.

Contact George Avalos at 408-859-5167.