JFK University has leased space in nearby Walnut Creek and Orinda for more than 20 years, and now wants to build a campus in Concord that embodies its philosophy, brings together its five schools and secures its future, says JFK University president Charles Glasser. The development would add about 90,000-sf to the university's local space and bring it from 27 to 40 classrooms.
JFK University signed an agreement with the City of Concord three years ago stating its intention to buy the property. Fund-raising began last year and university leaders hope to break ground in early 2002 and open the building to students in the fall of 2003.
A large chunk of the money has come from major foundations such as the William Hewlett Trust, the Ford Family Trust and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. JFK University, founded in 1964, needs to raise about $15 million more in order to have the gain the remaining $20 million by issuing a bond. The university now pays about $1 million on rent and could use that money to pay down bond debt when it is freed up.
Also for the past two years, the university has worked closely with the city of Concord to design a joint library that would be grander than either could afford on its own. Concord has agreed to shell out $11.8 million, about half the cost, in support of the effort. The first two floors would be open to the public at no charge. The top floors would be academic and law libraries accessible to the public for a fee.
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