Chancellor's Office on shaky ground

A tentative agreement to build a replacement facility for the Cal State University Chancellor's Office, at a cost of $37 million, was reached Sept. 13 at the CSU Board of Trustees meeting.

The facility is being replaced as a result of studies conducted by the James A. Hill & Associates engineering firm, which determined that the building complex represents a significant seismic hazard, said Colleen Bentley-Adler, media relations manager.

The Chancellor's Office, which is located on 400 Golden Shore in downtown Long Beach, is built on a landfill, and the soil beneath the building could be subject to liquefaction if a significant earthquake were to occur, Bentley-Adler said.

Approximately 300 Chancellor's Office employees work inside the four-level building on a day-to-day basis, she said.

The agreement includes provisions for strengthening the existing building at a cost of $1.5 million.

The 20-year-old building is ranked third on a Seismic Safety Board list of 115 CSU buildings that require repair to bring them up to current standards, said Bentley-Adler.

"Even though we will build a new facility, the life safety of our employees in this building is our top priority," said Molly Broad, CSU executive vice chancellor.

The Office of the State Architect recommended repairs that include strengthening the connections between the walls and the floors and adding beams that will run from the basement to the third floor, Bentley-Adler said.

The CSU Headquarters Building Authority, comprised of representatives of the trustees and of the City of Long Beach considered remodeling the existing facility, leasing or buying another building and building a new facility on the existing site, she said.

They ultimately decided on construction of a new facility on what is now the parking lot across the street from the trustees' headquarters.

"We already have the land, which was donated by the City of Long Beach, and the Chancellors house is here," Bentley-Adler said. "We have an established presence in Long Beach."

Design and construction of a 140,000 square-feet facility will take approximately two years, she said.

The HBA is responsible for securing bonds for the cost of construction, she said.