From our partners at Southwestern College:
“After more than 50 years in the making, Southwestern College dedicated and cut the ribbon to the new Wellness & Aquatics Complex on the Chula Vista campus. Hundreds of students, employees and community members filled the bleachers on the pool deck to hear the story of its construction and to take tours of the new $52 million, three-story facility.
Built on the corner of East H Street and Otay Lakes Road, the 75,000 square-foot facility contains a gymnasium, fitness labs, cardio workout rooms, multiple team locker rooms and classrooms. It’s also home to two Olympic-sized swimming pools and a 25-meter therapy pool.
“This facility is a huge blessing to all student athletes,” said Betsy Rozow, a Jaguar swimmer who spent all last year practicing at pools in National City. “It has strengthened our athletic community.”
The complex was designed by the architecture firm Gensler, who also designed the DeVore Stadium Fieldhouse, and was built by Balfour Beatty construction company with the help of local union plumbers, electricians and more.
The Wellness & Aquatics Complex was funded by Proposition R, a $389 million dollar general obligation bond passed by South Bay voters in November 2008. The facility replaces the college’s pools and gymnasium that have been demolished to make room for the next Proposition R project, the new Math, Science & Engineering Building, scheduled to open in fall 2019.”
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The Wellness & Aquatics Complex at Southwestern College was built under a Project Labor Agreement that has created good-paying middle-class jobs and apprenticeship opportunities for local residents.
IBEW 569 Business Manager Nick Segura gave the following remarks:
“It’s really great to be here today – not just because Southwestern College was the first college I attended after I got out of the Navy, or that my eldest daughter graduated from here a couple years ago – but because of the partnerships that Southwestern College is building our communities.
IBEW 569 is a proud sponsor of today’s grand opening and ribbon cutting of the new Wellness and Aquatic Center – a new facility that was built by over 20 of our local electricians and communications techs.
Together with Southwestern College, we are creating local jobs and apprenticeship training opportunities while also delivering a state of the art facility with today’s newest technology.
We are excited to continue our partnership and keep investing in our local communities with jobs, education, wellness, and shared prosperity.”
