State Senator Martin M. Looney
October 28, 2009
Senate Majority Leader: Approval of Gateway Project Couldn’t Come at Better Time
Senator Looney: new Gateway campus will grow jobs, help train workforce
Hartford: Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney (D-New Haven) says that Greater New Haven’s economy will score a major victory this Friday when the state Bond Commission is expected to approve funding for the new campus of Gateway Community College (GCC). Construction on the $182 million project in downtown New Haven will begin this fall and the campus is expected to be open for the start of the 2012 school year.
“I appreciate Gov. Rell’s support for this important project — one that I first proposed nearly a decade ago,” said Senator Looney. “The consolidated state-of-the-art Gateway campus will not only serve as a superb resource for the students and faculty but for the entire region. Gateway will help train our workforce and generate jobs. Considering the difficult economic times we face, it is critical the momentum continues and the deadlines for completion are met.”
According to the City of New Haven’s Economic Impact Study for the Gateway project, the new campus will bring approximately 184 full-time and 364 part-time jobs to downtown New Haven. Gateway Community College serves more than 11,000 students and employs more than 640 full and part-time faculty members.
“I am ecstatic to have come to this moment in the history of Gateway Community College,” said GCC President Dr. Dorsey Kendrick. “I see this as a most important project for the City of New Haven and the greater region that we serve. Funding for this new campus tells the story of a great commitment to education and the economic viability of our community on the part of our legislators and the city. The college community looks forward to continuing the tradition of access to success in a state-of-the-art facility that places our students in the heart of an already vibrant community.”
Gateway Community College is currently located on two campuses at 60 Sargent Drive on Long Wharf in New Haven and at 88 Bassett Road in North Haven. The new campus will be located on College and Church Streets, at the site of the former Macy’s and Malley’s department store. It will span more than 360,000 square feet and will include a 600-car parking garage. Currently, GCC serves 24 towns and cities in the greater New Haven area, including: Ansonia, Bethany, Branford, Bridgeport, Cheshire, Clinton, Derby, East Haven, Guilford, Hamden, Madison, Meriden Middletown, Milford, New Haven North Branford, North Haven, Orange, Seymour, Shelton, Stratford, Wallingford, West Haven and Woodbridge. For more information, visit www.gwcc.commnet.edu.
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