During their latest session, the Washington State Legislature awarded CWU more than $65 million which will be used to renovate several buildings on campus.

According to a press release from CWU, $55.5 million of the money will be used to expand and renovate Nicholson Pavilion, which has not had a major renovation since it was opened 62 years ago.

The $55.5 million is in addition to the $5 million CWU received in the state’s previous biennial budget for “design and development of drawings and specifications” for Nicholson Pavilion renovations.

“The project will allow for the building to be modernized and expanded for the Department of Sports and Movement Studies degree program, which is one of the largest providers of public-school health and fitness teachers in Washington state as well as the Master of Science in Sport and Athletic Administration and undergraduate programs in dance, sport coaching, sport business, and recreation management,” the press release reads.

More than $5 million of the money will be used to design a new facility to replace both Farrell Hall and the Language & Literature Building. This building would serve the academic departments being displaced.

A portion of the money will also be used on upgrades to Brooks Library. 

According to the press release, the current buildings are “extremely energy inefficient and require constant and costly repairs due to their age.”

“Built using concrete and masonry, the structures are difficult to modify and cost-prohibitive to bring up to current building code standards,” the press release reads.

The budget also allotted $3.2 million for a new industrial chiller which will extend “campus cooling capacity for present and future growth.” $2.1 million in the budget is slated for restoring Barge Hall, which was flooded with several inches of water in February due to a frozen pipe.

President James L. Gaudino said he was happy with the money that CWU received in this year’s budget.

“Central did very well during this year’s state budget process,” Gaudino said in the press release. “The governor and our state legislators recognized the excellent work being done by our faculty and staff, and generously approved funding for critical infrastructure that will allow us to continue to provide the best quality education for our students.”

According to the press release “the construction will have an estimated $75 million economic impact” in Ellensburg.

Steve DuPont, the executive director of government affairs, thanked several local legislators in the press release for their support in helping CWU receive the funding.

“We’re extremely grateful that the state legislature and the governor prioritized these essential projects, and approved this vital funding,” DuPont said in the press release. “We’re particularly thankful for the support of Governor Inslee and our local legislators, including Senators Judy Warnick and Jim Honeyford, and Representatives Tom Dent and Alex Ybarra.”