Los Angeles Community College District Awards More than $5 Million in Contracts for Projects at Los Angeles Southwest College and West Los Angeles College

Contracts set to generate about 51 construction jobs

Southwest to see major modernization of its Technology Education Center

October 18, 2007 (LOS ANGELES) Moving to meet today’s technological teaching challenges, a key to providing Los Angeles residents with the training they need for today’s jobs, the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) Board of Trustees has awarded $5,124,000 in construction contracts. The projects include a modernization of the Technology Education Center at Los Angeles Southwest College, and the installation of a Sound Blanket project at West Los Angeles College. Each contract is the result of formal competitive bidding, and will receive funding from the Proposition A/AA Bond program, the $2.2 billion bond measures approved by Los Angeles voters in 2001 and 2003.

“Our focus is on training workers to meet the jobs being created by the 21st Century Los Angeles economy,” said Sylvia Scott-Hayes, president of the LACCD Board of Trustees. "These contracts are beneficial in many ways: we are keeping dollars in the local business community while modernizing our higher education facilities."

The District estimates that these two contracts will generate about 51 construction jobs.

LACCD’s Board of Trustees recently authorized the following construction contracts:

Los Angeles Southwest College: Icon-West, Inc., a business based in Los Angeles, was awarded $4,507,000 to modernize the Technology Education Center at Southwest College. When finished, the TEC will be an improved home to the Arts & Humanities, Computer Technology, Math, and Computer Science departments. The project will consist of limited demolition, interior tenant improvements at select areas, new interior painting throughout, new classrooms marker boards, new classrooms mini-blinds, replacement of water damaged interior and exterior horizontal and vertical finishes, new classroom audio visual and data systems, new technology closets, a new roofing system, new electrometric coasting at exterior walls, and other improvements. Twenty-six contractors requested bid packets and seven responsive bids were received, ranging from $4,507,000 to $6,344,030.

West Los Angeles College: The Trustees approved a contract with Joe’s Sunrise Construction, Inc., a small business based in San Bernardino, Calif. for construction services for the Sound Blanket project at for $617,853. This project will add sound protection to the recently completed haul road at West. Five contractors requested bid packets and four responsive bids were received, ranging from $617,853 to $1,030,000. The project is expected to be completed by the end of November 2007.

The Los Angeles Community College District, one of the largest community college districts in the country, has embarked on a $2.2 billion construction and modernization program at its nine colleges.  The LACCD has contracted 86 percent of the construction program's work to date to local, small, emerging or disabled-veteran enterprise businesses.  Companies interested in participating in this $2.2 billion renovation and modernization program are encouraged to visit www.LACCDBuildsGreen.org and click on “Doing Business with Us.”

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