NWF State College spending millions on Niceville, South Walton Center facilities

In higher education, the money to build buildings and programs often is hard to come by.

That's why Northwest Florida State College is taking advantage of the dollars that have recently come its way. Construction is at an all-time high at the college's main campus in Niceville and at its new South Walton Center.

"We're in a student, a program and a facility growth phase," President Bob Richburg said. "That's an exciting time in any institution, but the fact that it's occurring at one time is just fascinating."

Richburg had always expected the college to expand into South Walton County, but believed it wouldn't happen until about 2025.

"We've been accelerating," he said. "It's an interesting time."

The $2.8-million South Walton Center will be built on 16 acres of the nearly 30-acre site on U.S. Highway 331, just north of U.S. Highway 98. South Walton High School, the South Walton Library and the Walton County Government Center are located on adjacent parcels.

"It will have specialized offerings," Richburg said of the center. "South Walton will become to that area what Chautauqua is to DeFuniak Springs."

The first phase of the construction is an 11,000-square-foot structure that will combine four buildings under one roof. The facility will house administrative offices, classrooms and computer labs.

The site also will include facilities to house the Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance, an environmental organization operated under the auspices of the college. Also housed there will be the new Allyn C. Donaldson Entrepreneurial Institute, a program made possible through gifts to the college from Donaldson, a longtime Santa Rosa Beach resident and NWF State College Foundation board member.

The South Walton Center will be the college's second complex in the county.

Gary Yancey, vice president of administrative services, said the college is fortunate to have the money to complete these projects.

"With the economy the way it is, it's a tribute to our legislative delegation," he said.

The South Walton Center is expected to be complete by next summer.

On the main campus, construction and the headaches it causes likely will be a part of daily life for quite some time, Yancey said.

"It's really stressful," he said. "It's disrupted traffic flow and parking and people are impacted, but everyone is excited."

Students, staff and faculty are watching the progress of the new 120,000-square-foot Community Services Complex. The joint-use facility will house Okaloosa County's 911 Emergency Operations Center, a 2,400-seat basketball arena, a wellness center, ROTC facilities and other instructional spaces.

"We're running as hard as we can," Yancey said. "We have an aggressive schedule."

Sitting on 28 acres of the 265-acre Niceville campus, the facility is being built to sustain 190 mph winds so that it can also be used as the county's primary hurricane shelter.

The $30.67 million project is being funded jointly by federal, state and local money. Work is expected to be completed by the summer of 2010.