‘A welcoming place’ –  Black Hawk embraces $52M in projects

Sylvia Spitzer was amazed by the updated Building 3 on the Black Hawk College campus in Moline. “It’s spectacular. It’s absolutely gorgeous,” the Illinois woman said as she toured the building. “There was no lighting in here before (the renovation work). Now, they’ve opened it all up and there’s lighting everywhere you look.” Ms. Spitzer […]

Sylvia Spitzer was amazed by the updated Building 3 on the Black Hawk College campus in Moline. “It’s spectacular. It’s absolutely gorgeous,” the Illinois woman said as she toured the building. “There was no lighting in here before (the renovation work). Now, they’ve opened it all up and there’s lighting everywhere you look.”

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Ms. Spitzer was one of hundreds of guests giving lofty praises to the renovated Building 3 and new athletic facilities at Black Hawk on Saturday, Sept. 14, during grand opening ceremonies. The festivities included a ribbon-cutting ceremony, tours of Building 3 and games on the new baseball and softball fields. They were all held to officially welcome the more than $52 million in capital projects at the community college. Most of that money – about $40 million – was spent in the past two years to update and renovate the college’s Building 3 by adding more classrooms, athletic facilities, science labs and much more. “It’s absolutely impressive. I didn’t recognize it when I walked through the building,” said Keith Miller, a former Black Hawk College president, who was one of the day’s guest speakers. (Mr. Miller also was honored Saturday by being recognized as the college’s first-ever president emeritus.) Mr. Miller added that he is pleased to see Building 3 updated because it will better serve today’s students and help attract more students to the college in the future. Among those current Black Hawk students is Thomas Servantes-Mayo, who was helping welcome visitors to Saturday’s events. “I think this building looks pretty fantastic. … But I’m a new student here, so I don’t know what it looked like before,” he said. Before the massive renovation project, Building 3 had a far different look. In fact, during the ceremony, the old version of the building was called a “concrete bunker” and “dungeon” by Greg Spitzer, an architect with Demonica Kemper Architects, the Chicago-based architectural firm that worked on the renovations. “Today, it’s a vibrant place,” he added. “This is a welcoming place for students. … It has all the newest technology for the students,” Illinois Sen. Mike Halpin, D-Rock Island, said during Saturday’s ceremony. Black Hawk College President Jeremy Thomas added that one of the top goals of the massive work to Building 3 is to create a campus “where every student can thrive.” “I encourage our faculty to lean forward. … We are building pathways to a brighter future,” Mr. Thomas added. Here’s a look at the updates to Building 3 and the new athletic facilities: Building 3: $40.3 million renovation projects completed between 2022-2024. The projects included:

• Athletic offices and student center.
• New locker rooms and training room.
• Gym, concession stand, indoor turf and golf simulator.
• Fitness center.
• Campus police office.
• Food pantry.
• Eight natural science labs.
• Four health science labs.
• Seven science prep and storage rooms.
• Five classrooms.
• Computer lab.
• Faculty officers.
• New entrance.

BHC Athletic Complex: $12.1 million project from 2022 to 2024.

• New baseball and softball fields with turf.
• New soccer field with natural grass.
• Concession stand and restrooms.

Building 3 and the athletic facilities will not be the last projects to be completed on the Black Hawk campus. That next renovation will center on a $29.3 million update of Building 2. That project has already begun with the demolition phase and is scheduled to be done in the fall of 2025, according to the Black Hawk College’s Facebook page. “I’m very excited about the future. But the reality is we need to do more. … I can’t wait to see what’s next for Black Hawk College,” said Mr. Halpin.