Despite a winter completion date, efforts are still underway to finalize the construction of the Modular Village, which is located near Lot L on the south end of campus.

The Modular Village, a $13.5 million project, was originally set to be completed in January 2025, but has been pushed back to June of this year.

The site will house the Warrior Pantry, Warrior Closet, Wellness Center, and a dance and Pilates studio in individual buildings. It will also include restrooms and lockers.

The primary reason for the delay is due to inspections not having been completed, which has prevented Southern California Edison from electrifying the site.

“Some utility and customer inspections were not yet completed by January,” Gabriela Ornelas, a spokesperson for Southern California Edison, said. “Crews are working to energize the building, and for the past few weeks, we have coordinated with the community college.”

As a result of delayed inspections, the college cannot file and submit a DSA-6 form, which is issued by the Division of the State Architect of California, the authority which oversees building compliance with rules and regulations.

“Once they have established [compliance], they issue a permit for people to start moving [into] the site,” Loic Audusseau, chief technology officer and interim vice president of administrative services, said.

The decision to construct the Modular Village was made following an agreement the college made with the State Chancellor’s Office regarding the demolition of particular intact buildings.

Since the Modular Village will be structured to include various programs and services, buildings including the North and South Gyms, where the dance studio is currently stationed, and the Art and Behavioral Sciences Building will be demolished.

Dance professor Daniel Berney said all those buildings were used as temporary locations for dance and yoga classes while the new Modular Village was being developed.

“I am excited about where it’s going,” Berney said. “The dynamic [of the college] has changed since COVID.”

The building that will accommodate the dance program will have the same amount of space as it was given at the North and South Gyms, as well as the same number of dance studios and flooring.

Berney said the new location will be more accessible for students, have more parking availability and better lighting for night classes.

In addition, early construction setbacks prevented crews from starting the Modular Village project on time.

Audusseau said a lot of issues had to be addressed at the initial stages of the project, such as meeting specific work requirements and signing contracts.

It is estimated that it could take around three to four months for the Modular Village to be fully constructed as a whole.

“The remaining activities [are] to … install everything, including the technology equipment, and so on and so forth,” Audusseau said.

The services and courses provided to students through the departments and centers which are moving will increase or remain the same.

“We don’t plan on deleting any of our services,” Sharonda Barksdale, student success coordinator of the Basic Needs Center, said.

Editor’s note: Links were added Thursday, March 20 at 2:55 a.m.