Nearly $1 billion of construction inches toward finish line

Officials say a portion of the two-decade long revitalization project is set to be completed by 2026.

By: Kaia Mann, Editor-in-chief

Workers install windows on Academic Complex 1, set to house multiple departments. The building sits at Burbank Boulevard ad Ethel Avenue. (Jeremy Ruiz for The Valley Star)

Valley College’s $704 million “ReVitalizing Valley” project is now more than 75 percent complete, with three major construction projects in progress set to be completed by 2026. 

This project was set in motion over 20 years ago when Los Angeles Voters approved proposition A and AA, to improve the facilities on campus. Measure J and CC were later approved in 2008 and 2016 respectively to further construction projects and expand educational programs. 

The revitalization plan includes both renovations and new developments and aims to modernize student facilities, consolidate academic departments, and integrate sustainable building practices. The largest projects—the Academic Complex 1, Academic Building 2, and the Valley Academic and Cultural Center—are expected to reshape the campus.

The $90 million Academic Complex 1, at Burbank Boulevard and Ethel Avenue, replaces bungalows built in the 1950s. Construction began in May 2023 and is scheduled for completion later this year.

The three-story, 84,000-square-foot facility will house more than two dozen classrooms, labs, and offices, bringing together the Business Administration, Emergency Services, Mathematics, Psychology, and Sociology departments under one roof.

A short walk away, Academic Building 2 stands between the library and music building, replacing the now-demolished theater complex. The 60,931-square-foot facility will serve as the home for communication and technology studies.

 According to NAC Architecture, the building’s programming architect, the design incorporates "movable desks" to accommodate different learning environments and offers a variety of informal gathering spaces for "meeting, studying, teaming, eating, and relaxing."

The Valley Academic and Cultural Center (VACC), has been in the works for nearly a decade. The more than $100 million, three-story facility will unify the arts, media, and design departments in the northwest corner of campus upon its scheduled opening in 2026. It promises state-of-the-art features, including smart classrooms, four theaters, rehearsal spaces, audio/visual labs, a radio station and a newsroom.

However, the VACC has been marred by delays and criticism, most notably due to a $35 million wrongful termination lawsuit filed in May of last year between its previous construction firm, Pinner Construction, and the LACCD. Since the initial filing, neither party has publicly commented on the matter.

Beyond the VACC, ongoing construction projects have reshaped the campus in several ways. Fenced-off areas and blocked pathways have become common sights, with the former field between the art building and the old theater, once a space for classes and events, now gone. The theater department has also had to move its productions off-campus, adapting to the loss of its performance space. 

Despite the controversy, the ReVitalizing Valley project has maintained a strong focus on sustainability. All three of the current projects have earned LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification, with both Academic Complex 1 and Academic Building 2 achieving a Silver rating. LEED-certified buildings are designed to reduce energy consumption, water use, and carbon emissions.

Valley College has been a leader in green building efforts within the Los Angeles Community College District. In 2006, it unveiled the Maintenance & Operations / Sheriff’s Station, the first new campus building in over 30 years—and the first in the entire LACCD to earn LEED certification.