AFTER months of remaining tight-lipped, Wiltshire College bosses revealed plans for a new £30m campus in Chippenham yesterday.
A series of presentations were held at the college in Cocklebury Road, giving people a taste of what could be expected of the new building.
The redevelopment is the first of what the college say is a series of projects spanning the next four years.
In April construction website cnplus reported that Wiltshire College was undergoing a £64.5m project involving all of the campuses, including Trowbridge and Lackham.
However, the college would not comment at the time and have only this week revealed its plans for Chippenham.
The college have confirmed the plans have been in the pipeline for the past 18 months and will involve Chippenham, Lackham and Trowbridge, as well as Salisbury College.
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The Keystone Project Management Group and Ellis Williams Architects are involved in the project, which has been joint-funded by the college and the Learning and Skills Council.
The main objective for Chippenham is to create a landmark building in the town, which will promote the college and be seen from the railway line, as well as being aesthetically pleasing.
The new campus would include an Atrium at the front of the building, which is designed to draw people in, and would make use of the site to incorporate green open spaces.
The college said the building would be environmentally sustainable, with rainwater collected on the roof being recycled, and water from small lakes around the building used as part of the air conditioning system.
Next month the college will submit a detailed planning application to North Wiltshire District Council and it is hoped the project will secure planning permission by December. Architects said the plans are 95 per cent finished.
If plans are approved, construction work will start in June 2009 and the new college building will be in use by July 2011.
David Holdsworth, vice principal of corporate resources at the college, said: "We aim to create a genuine landmark building with first rate facilities for all our students and customers within Chippenham and the broader community."
Deputy chairman of Chippenham Town Council John Scragg said town councillors had been very impressed with the plans after a presentation last week.
He said: "It all looks pretty good and one very positive aspect is the location.
"It is near the station and will hopefully encourage students to use public transport.
"We will be having a closer look at the architecture to see the effects on nearby residents but it is a very good thing for the town."
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