Kearsley Construction Inc., of Spokane, has been awarded a contract to construct a three-story, about 71,000-square-foot business and social science building at Spokane Falls Community College here.


Kearsleys bid for the project was about $13.3 million. Work is scheduled to begin within the next few weeks and to be completed next summer, says Butch Slaughter, district facilities project manager for Community Colleges of Spokane.


The structure will be built in the northeast portion of the 123-acre SFCC campus, on open space just east of the music building, Slaughter says. It will be the largest building on the campus, which currently has 17 operational buildings serving an enrollment of about 6,000 students, says Mark Palek, SFCC president.


The schools business and social science students currently attend classes in three one-story buildings together totaling more than 40,000 square feet of floor space. Those buildings are all more than 35 years old and will be demolished once the new structure is completed, says Palek. At some time in the future, the land freed up by the removal of those buildings likely will be used for additional classroom buildings, and possibly a child-care center, he says.


The structure was designed by Northwest Architectural Co., of Spokane.


Business students will occupy the north side of the three-story building, and social-science students will occupy the south side, says Jim Minkler, dean of humanities and social sciences. He says a large atrium at the lower level will separate the two programs.