A rendering of the future ECUAD campus on Great Northern Way / photo courtesy ECUAD
Yesterday, BC Premier Christy Clark announced that a $113-million investment in a new visual, media and design facility for Emily Carr University of Art + Design at the Great Northern Way Campus, consolidating plans for a move away from ECUAD’s longtime Granville Island home.
“Emily Carr University had outgrown its old home,” said Premier Clark in a release. “Too much success is a nice problem to have, and just as their graduates move onto bigger and better career options, we’re pleased to help the university move into a bigger and better home.”
The new facility will allow the university to enhance the education and skills training in media, design and art programs in ways that have not been possible due to size constraints of the current Granville Island campus. The new buildings will occupy approximately 26,600 gross square metres and accommodate over 1,800 students.
The project will have a total cost of approximately $134 million. The province will invest up to $113 million, with Emily Carr and other donors contributing additional funds towards the ultimate cost. The university will provide details on its additional funding, including a capital campaign, in the future. Emily Carr will be seeking a team to design, build, finance and maintain the new campus. The competitive selection process is expected to begin in February with the release of a request for qualifications (RFQ).
Construction on the project is due to start in May 2014 and is expected to be complete by July 2016.
Emily Carr is a 25 per cent shareholder in the GNWC along with the British Columbia Institute of Technology, the University of British Columbia, and Simon Fraser University.
