College’s plans for a Parrish campus get new life after a pandemic setback. Take a look
COVID-19 dealt a setback to State College of Florida’s plans to build a campus in fast-growing Parrish, but did not derail them.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, faced with an economic crisis in 2020 as the pandemic sent Florida into lockdown, vetoed a $5 million appropriation for the campus, money that SCF officials counted on as a starting point for fundraising efforts.
With the threat of coronavirus, SCF turned its attention from future bricks-and-mortar projects to the health and safety of its students, faculty and staff.
The pandemic also caused supply chain issues, sending the price of construction materials soaring.
“Construction costs continue to go up, so the sooner we can get our hands around all of this, the better,” Carol Probstfeld, president of SCF, said in 2020 as the pandemic loomed.
That was just three years after SCF purchased 74 acres of vacant land at 11680 Erie Road for about $2.5 million for the planned campus.
No one could have predicted construction prices would roughly double in the next few years, pushing the estimated cost for the first phase of the campus to $35 million.
Looking ahead, Probstfeld said she is optimistic about prospects for state funding in the future.
“We have a really good runway ahead with our local legislative delegation,” she said.
In 2020, the Manatee County Planning and Zoning Commission unanimously recommended approval of SCF’s three-phase Parrish campus plan.
The first phase would be for 60,000 square feet and include a 40,000-square-foot multi-purpose building, entrance and parking.
Completion of the first phase is probably still six to 10 years out, Probstfeld said.
Phases two and three are even further out.
Envisioned are a focus on nursing skills, public safety, teaching and general education classes.
When all three stages of development are completed, SCF Parrish would have about 531,230 square feet of floor area including 455,000 square feet of college-related buildings and facilities. Those would include administration, offices, classrooms, student union/ library, a possible collegiate school, dormitories, recreational areas and accessory uses.
“We’ve identified dormitories as a potential use because we don’t quite know what the future holds, and we want to make sure we have a broad range of options for the college,” Katie LaBarr, of Stantec Consulting Services, said in 2020.
Also planned is 76,230 square feet of commercial and office space.
“My dream had been that it would be much sooner. The pandemic turned our attention in another direction, towards the students and staff,” Probstfeld said.
The planned SCF campus is across the street from Parrish Community High School and is a key part of an “academic cluster” envisioned in the Parrish Village Neighborhood Action Plan that the county commissioned.
The plan also calls for a town center, and a central park for events and recreation in a 2,100-acre area between Moccasin Wallow Road and the intersection of 121st Avenue East and U.S. 301.
Because of the time that has elapsed from the initial submission of SCF’s general development plan, Manatee County Building Services requested that plans for the Parrish campus be brought back for review.
Details on the review
What: The planning and zoning commission plan review
When: 9 a.m. Aug. 11
Where: Patricia M. Glass Chambers of the Manatee County Administration Building, 1112 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton.
