College of the Canyons will demolish one of its older buildings Wednesday to make way for a “new and improved” administration and student services facility.

The 30-year-old administration (“A”) building is coming down starting at 10 a.m., when bulldozers and construction crews are scheduled to wipe it from the face of the Valencia campus.

The college’s new Student Services and Administration Building is expected to feature approximately 46,000 square-feet of operation area, spread throughout two stories.

Included on the building’s first floor will be an expanded Admissions & Records office featuring new computer labs and kiosks for student use, along with an official college  ‘welcoming center’ to help ensure students and campus visitors are able to access the appropriate campus department or destination for their needs.

Interior of COC’s 30-year-old “A” building.

The second floor of the office will also house additional computer kiosks, along with several other key student service departments including the college’s counseling department, Transfer Center and Career Center. Additional space has also been set aside to accommodate the college’s Student Services, Instruction, and Public Information Offices.

Plans also call for the inclusion of a new Financial Aid office and expanded college switchboard and mail room area.

The current bid date for the college’s Student Services and Administration Building construction project is Jan. 10, with bids expected to be awarded during the district’s first Board of Trustees meeting in February 2013.

Under the current construction schedule, the college would then break ground on the new facility in March and begin a planned 24-month construction schedule.

More History of the A-Building

Interior of COC’s 30-year-old “A” building.

The college’s current student services/administration facility — known as the “A” building — first opened in February 1982 as the Valencia campus’ main College Services Building.

Housing both the college’s new Child Development Center (CDC) and a variety of college administration offices, the newly constructed building allowed COC to immediately began providing pre-school services to Santa Clarita Valley families.

However, after the opening of the college’s Family Studies and Early Childhood Education Center in 1995, the “A” building was redesigned to house a number of the college’s student support offices, including the Admissions & Records and counseling departments.

“For more than 30 years, the A-building has been a first point of contact and important stopping place for hundreds of thousands of students, parents, community members and campus visitors looking to learn more about the educational opportunities available at College of the Canyons,” said Michael Wilding, Assistant Superintendent-Vice President of Student Services at the college.