Construction on a $6.2 million Student Success Center at Butler County Community College is set to begin this month.

The new 34,500 square-foot building will house departments currently located in five separate buildings on campus, and is expected to change the layout of the college.

"This will close our inner loop because the building will be on the existing roadway," said college spokeswoman Susan Changnon. "It creates a whole new quadrangle ... and we are going to develop that for students."

The building will be constructed on a roadway that runs in front of the college's admissions building. The roadway will be relocated behind the admissions building, changing how students, faculty and the general public now enter the college's main campus.

An L-shape, two-story frame was designed for the new building. Among the offices that will be relocated to the building are a welcome center, admissions, financial aid, student counseling services, disability services, career services, the KEYS program, the bookstore, the campus police, the registrar's office, student life, a lounge, student club offices and the CUBE newspaper office.

Brian Opitz, BC3 director of operations, said the building actually came in under original estimates.

"When we estimated it a year ago, we estimated it a bit higher," he said. "We were very cautious on our design to help keep costs low, and I think we accomplished that."

Construction is estimated to take 14 months, but Mr. Opitz said he hopes to have it finished in 12.

Before the building can be constructed, the new access road will have to be completed, he said.

BC3 trustees awarded contracts at their March 19 meeting for the construction of the building. Among the contracts awarded are R.A. Glancy and Sons of Hampton, general contracting, $4.1 million; Guy's Mechanical Systems of Rochester, heating, ventilation and air conditioning, $840,000; East End Plumbing and Mechanical of Pittsburgh: plumbing, $172,800; J&J Fire Protection Co. of Butler: fire protection services, $87,500, and Right Electric in Butler, electrical, $1.07 million.

The building was designed by architectural firm Burt Hill of Butler.