Students attending Algonquin College this fall and expecting a view of Pembroke’s waterfront will have to wait a bit longer.

The college has announced the opening of its new waterfront campus in the city’s downtown will have to wait a few more weeks as construction crews complete their work on the $36-million dollar project. This won’t affect the start of the school year as fall classes at Algonquin College in the Ottawa Valley will begin Sept. 4 as scheduled at the Pembroke Street campus.

Karen Davies, the dean of the campus, said they have been prepared for this possibility.

“We knew the construction schedule was ambitious, and we have been working on contingency plans for several weeks, just in case the building was not ready for us at the start of the school year,” she said. “By operating out of our existing campus, we can ensure the school year begins on time for our students and the student timetables and the curriculum our faculty delivers is not compromised.”

The construction of the new campus has been underway for more than a year and has generated a high level of community interest. It has been the largest construction project in Pembroke’s downtown in decades.

Once completed, the four-storey building will feature 16 classrooms, nine labs, a student commons, library, gymnasium and fitness centre, which the dean said will be a spectacular learning and teaching environment for our students and faculty.

“This community has waited a long time for a new college campus, and I hope everyone will be patient just a little bit longer as our construction team puts the finishing touches on our new facilities. It will be well worth the wait,” Ms. Davies said.

The campus is being built along the Ottawa River, making it Algonquin College’s only waterfront campus. Its placement within public park space, and adjacent to Pembroke’s downtown, will make the campus a focal point for the city.

More than 900 full-time, academic upgrading and apprenticeship students will study at the campus this fall, a record enrolment for the campus which has been operating in Pembroke since the late 1960s. Approximately 40 per cent of the students who study at the campus are from out-of-town.

Stephen Uhler is a Daily Observer multimedia journalist

stephen.uhler@sunmedia.ca