Douglas College students now have access to a brand new, state-of-the-art facility and it’s only a stone’s throw away from the college’s New Westminster campus.
On Monday, Douglas College officially opened its new Anvil Centre office tower location featuring four floors, 21 classrooms, meeting space and a student lounge.
Bachelor of business administration student Jeffrey Banggayan speaks at the official opening of Douglas College’s Anvil Centre office tower campus on Monday. Photo by Cayley Dobie
“I love it. It’s beautiful. It feels really fresh. There’s an energy here. I love all the open space for students, and I’m really, really happy with how it turned out,” Douglas College president and CEO Kathy Denton told the Record.
The college occupies the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth floors in the Anvil Centre tower. Right now, the plan is to have mostly commerce and business programs use the new campus, but Denton said eventually other programs will move over as well.
“The Douglas College Anvil Office Tower has added a lot of student-focused study and collaboration space, which is great. I really appreciate having such accessible and modern facilities at my fingertips for the remainder of my program,” said Jeffrey Banggayan, who is completing a bachelor of business administration at the college.
The new campus is 68,000 square feet and will accommodate more than 1,600 students. The college also expects the new campus will help alleviate some of the space constraints at its existing New Westminster campus as enrolment continues to rise.
“This expansion marks an important moment in Douglas College's history. It means we can accommodate the high level of student interest in our programs and ensure that students receive the most inspiring and relevant education during their time at Douglas College,” Denton said.
New Westminster MLA Judy Darcy congratulated Douglas College on the opening and said it will help make post-secondary education accessible for even more students in B.C.
“It’s a great day for New Westminster and a great day for Douglas College,” she said.
“Added seats and learning opportunities in such a convenient, central location will draw students from throughout the province, as well as help local students keep studying and working in the community they love.”
Douglas College has a 10-year lease agreement for the space, which totals $8.9 million.
