By Daily Press staff
Santa Monica College’s newest facility, designed specifically for its older students, will officially open this month.
SMC’s Emeritus College will celebrate the grand opening of its new facility — including a new art gallery — at 4:30 p.m. on March 18 at its four-story headquarters at 1227 Second St. in downtown Santa Monica.
The ceremony will include music, tours of the facility and the opening of the Emeritus College faculty art show, “Individual Perspectives,” in the ground-floor art gallery. The exhibit is the first to be installed in the gallery.
“This ceremony celebrates a dream come true for all of us who hold Emeritus College close to our hearts,” said Maggie Hall, associate dean of the program, designed for older Americans.
Emeritus College moved into its new headquarters last October, but work has continued in some parts of the building that were not quite complete. The move made history in two ways: It secured a permanent home for the program and it marked the first completed project funded by Measure U, the $160 million bond passed by Santa Monica-Malibu voters in 2002.
Highlights of the new building include the art gallery; a 99-seat multi-purpose room used for theatre readings, recitals, film screenings, lectures and more; an aerobics and physical fitness room comparable to established dance studios; and the D’Arcy Hayman Art Center that takes up an entire floor and includes two large art classrooms, a student lounge and a music and theater library.
The building also includes conference rooms, lecture classrooms and a computer room that will eventually house 24 computers, all connected to the Internet. Located next to a large parking structure and right on bus routes, the building also features outdoor patios and balconies.
Emeritus College students and instructors have praised the new facility for its ample space, light-drenched design, and custom-tailored classrooms for everything from yoga to art to stroke rehabilitation courses.
The new Emeritus College facility was designed by Santa Monica Councilman Herb Katz’s company, RTK Architects. With 24,000 square feet, it is four times larg-er than the former Emeritus facility, which also was on Second Street in space rented from the city underneath a municipal parking structure.
In 2002, the SMC Board of Trustees voted to purchase the contemporary glass building for $8.65 million. Still under construction at the time, the structure was custom designed on the interior for Emeritus. With additional interior work, the college has spent a total of $8.8 million of Measure U funds on the project. On top of that, Emeritus College has spent about $750,000 in private donations for interior work and furniture.
College officials had said their first priority for Measure U funds was a permanent home for Emeritus.
Emeritus is a program that provides a wide range of classes — ranging from the arts to current affairs to health — designed for older adults. In its 28-year history, it has grown from less than 200 students to a current enrollment of 2,500, with about 70 instructors.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 6, 2004. Read the original PDF.