On May 1 I signed the contract for the demolition of the current Goodman Building at 6-8 Alie Street. Although only built in the 1980s, the existing building has low ceilings and internal pillars, making it unsuitable for our purposes. It is more cost effective to demolish the current building and construct a brand new, purpose-built College on the site than to attempt to alter the existing structure. Our new premises will house a 200-seat lecture theatre, several other large meeting rooms and spacious open plan office space for College staff. There will also be a floor that we will rent out until we need it, giving us built-in expansion space if required.

Shortly after the contract was signed we handed over the building to the contractor, John F Hunt. Scaffolding and plastic sheeting have been put up at the front and back and window panes and frames have already been removed. Preparations are being made for demolition of the main structure of the building, which is expected to begin towards the end of July and take until November.

In the meantime, the design team are working on the phase 4 plans for the building. Trustee Board will review the latest proposals, which include detailed plans, at their meeting on July 28^th. There have been several changes made since the phase 3 plans were drawn up, including reconfiguration of the second floor meeting room suite to allow all four rooms to benefit from natural daylight. A previously shared space in the basement has been divided to provide separate cycle and refuse stores. The third floor glass and timber partition has been extended to provide greater privacy between the atrium and office area.

Once the plans have been approved they will be given to the construction company chosen to build the new premises to allow them to give an accurate estimate of cost. Work on the new building is expected to start in the new year and be completed by mid-2018. I will keep you updated on progress with the demolition over the summer.