Cal State Monterey Bay gears up for a new year with new construction

SEASIDE >> Thursday was a busy day at Cal State Monterey Bay, with students moving into their housing assignments for the upcoming year and guests attending the project launch for a $38 million science and engineering building.

Wednesday and Thursday were move-in days for new and returning students. First-year students moved into residential halls Wednesday and second, third and fourth-years had their turn to move in Thursday.

This semester has proved a challenge for some students to secure their preferred housing. A boost in enrollment led to more students hoping to take advantage of school housing. Administrators have been trying to help more than 60 students get off the waitlist before the semester begins on Monday.

With the uptick in calls and emails from anxious students, some have had a difficult time getting through to the housing department. Katie Sarkany, a second-year biology major, has “a love-hate relationship with (housing)” since she struggled to get in contact with the department regarding her assignment and has only recently been assigned a roommate.

Now that the housing situation is settled, Sarkany looks forward to participating in classes for both her ecology, evolution and organismal biology concentration as well as her minor in Japanese language.

The Sarkany family moving second-year Katie into her North Quad apartment. (Andrea Valadez – Monterey Herald)

Veteran students like fourth-year Ava Velasco have had a bit of a smoother journey this summer. “(Move-in) has been pretty good so far,” said Velasco. “This is my fourth time doing it so it’s kind of the same old.”

Down the street in the parking lot next to the Chapman Science Academic Center, around 60 people were on campus for different reasons than Velasco and Sarkany, but with equal excitement.

This group gathered to celebrate the project launch of the Edward “Ted” Taylor Science and Engineering Building. The 20,000-square-foot building will contain workspaces, state-of-the-art laboratories and host the marine science and new mechatronics engineering programs.

Taylor Farms has been invested in seeing this building come to fruition since the idea came up seven years ago. “We’re grateful to have (the building) named after my dad,” said Taylor Farms Chairman and CEO Bruce Taylor.

Taylor described his father as an energetic, competitive lover of capitalism who “saw that as a way to build wealth for the community. His philanthropic endeavors really entailed providing good jobs for people … so it’s wonderful to be able to honor his legacy.”

Digital rendering of CSUMB’s new Edward “Ted” Taylor Science and Engineering Building. (Courtesy of CSUMB)

Funding was provided from various donors including the Taylor family, Roberta “Bertie” Bialek Elliott and the Packard Foundation. The Biden-Harris Inflation Reduction Act provided the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration with $3.3 billion to continue its commitment to climate resilience; NOAA has dedicated $7 million to build the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The new sanctuary facility will be located within the Taylor Science and Engineering Building.

Through the Inflation Reduction Act, NOAA also granted $71.1 million to the California Marine Sanctuary Foundation’s efforts to address the effects of wildfires and flooding in the region. The foundation created a $2 million program to fund internships for CSUMB and other local colleges students.

“It’s been a really great partnership over the years,” said John Armor, director of the office of national marine sanctuaries at NOAA. “We’re really excited for this building and now being colocated here will be a new chapter in that relationship going forward and will blossom additional opportunities for internships, partnerships, product development (and) outreach.”

Though the timeline is not set in stone yet, it is anticipated that the building will be completed in around three years, according to Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Andrew Lawson.

“It does take vision and leadership and it’s just been continual seeing a vision for what could be and sticking to continually pressing it forward,” said Lawson. “It’s been a lot of hard work and determination on some folks’ part … it’s really been the collective work of a lot of people.”

The plans for the building began seven years ago and it has been led by former and current CSUMB presidents Eduardo Ochoa and Vanya Quiñones, NOAA officials, community donors and Congressman Jimmy Panetta to secure the funding to develop the building.

Left to right: Taylor Farms Chairman and CEO Bruce Taylor, CSUMB mascot Monte, President Vanya Quiñones and Provost Andrew Lawson. (Andrea Valadez – Monterey Herald)

Panetta was unable to attend the ceremony in person as he is currently in Chicago for the Democratic National Convention, but recorded virtual remarks that were shown Thursday.

“What better place for the location of this office than right here at CSUMB?,” asked Panetta. “A place where students, scientists and environmentalists come together to learn, collaborate and do more on conservation efforts so they too can fulfill the responsibilities necessary in protecting the wellbeing of the sanctuary and to become future stewards of our community.”

The new emphasis in mechatronics and engineering is a strategic plan to get students involved in the local marine science and agriculture industries, according to Quiñones.

“Our aim is to make sure that our students move forward,” she said. “So by creating these opportunities in areas that are critical to Monterey Bay, we are also creating opportunities for our students to move forward and make a difference in the region.”