Three Rivers College officially kicked off the Crisp Technology Center construction project by welcoming Sides Construction of Jackson, Mo., to the team during Wednesday’s Board of Trustees meeting.
Billy Heisserer of Sides Construction will provide construction management services and be joined by Mike Pollard of Dille & Traxel as the architect for the expansion and renovation of the Crisp Technology Center.
“A huge benefit of this project in the long run is it will tie the Crisp Technology Center into campus,” TRC President Dr. Wesley Payne said. “For the first time you will be able to move from the area where Crisp is to the rest of campus without going around the world.”
Payne added the Crisp Technology Center is really the last major part of TRC campus infrastructure that has not been able to be upgraded.
With the help of then-Speaker of the House Todd Richardson, TRC was awarded a special appropriation of $2.75 million from the state for the expansion and renovation of the Crisp Technology Center. The college will use $250,000 of its own money for a $3 million proposal.
According to Pollard, the specifics of the project have not been decided as of yet, but discussions with stakeholders are taking place to gather needs and wants from the project.
“We have a budget, we know what the money was allocated for and where we want to end up,” he said. “But there are a lot of pieces to get to that point.”
The biggest challenge to get the project going will be finding a site to build on, Pollard added.
While the easy answer would be to expand on the Crisp Technology Center, Pollard said there really isn’t any “buildable area.”
“A big piece of the puzzle is developing buildable land by taking hillsides and pushing them around, filling in valleys and make flat areas to build buildings and parking lots,” he said. “This is one of the key components of this project to move forward with anything else.”
While developing land ideas, the meetings with stakeholders are taking place. Sides is able to give real-time cost feedback during these meetings to keep the project on budget while brainstorming.
“Once we have met with everyone and have ideas, then we will start trying to balance the budget and wish list,” Pollard said.
__Rotation of the Board__
The Board of Trustees rotated officers for the next year.
Trustee Tim Hager was moved to chairman of the board with Trustee Amber Richardson serving as vice-chairman.
Trustee Gary Featherson was rotated to secretary and Trustee Chris Williams will serve as treasurer.
__Financial Update__
According to Chief Financial Officer Charlotte Eubank, year-to-date numbers compared to the previous fiscal year continue to be very similar to what the board had seen in previous months.
Tuition and fees continue to track behind due to the drop in enrollment as well as tuition and fees compared to the previous year.
“Other areas are fairly comparable,” Eubank said.
Preliminary numbers for the budget to actual revenues are closing the gaps nicely, she added.
“We are doing quite well closing the gap on all budgeted revenue and we exceeded our budgeted revenue in non-operating revenue category, which includes our local property tax,” Eubank said.
Using the measurement of 75 percent through the fiscal year, Eubank said expense categories are on target with a couple pulling slightly ahead, which balances out.
This brings the year-to-date preliminary revenues minus expenses just over $4.8 million, she said.
__Commencement__
TRC commencement will be held at 6 p.m. May 17 at the Libla Family Sports Complex.
“Commencement for the first time will be on campus in a long, long time,” Payne said. “This is what we work for all year long. It’s the culmination of all the things we do.”
Tickets will be required to attend the commencement ceremony.
__Also Approved__
• FY20 Board of Trustee meeting dates.
The approved dates do not include a July board meeting with the late June meeting to accommodate budget review.
• The 2019-20 TRC holiday schedule.
• FY20 employee health insurance.
The college entered into the Missouri Health Education Group (MEHG) consortium effective, July 1, 2017.
Renewal for the fiscal year 2020 was presented with continuation of the same three plan options, with slight adjustments, as currently provided with United Healthcare to remain as the carrier for medical, dental and vision coverage.
Medical rates will increase by 8.6 percent. Dental and vision rates will remain the same.
__Next Meeting__
The next TRC Board of Trustees meeting will be at noon May 15 in the board room at the Tinnin Fine Arts Center.