Rio Hondo College News

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3600 Workman Mill Road / Whittier, CA 90601 / 562-692-0921
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Department: Planning and Development
Phone:  (562) 692-0921  Ext. 3412
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Article published: Wednesday, January 4, 2006
Whittier Daily News and San Gabriel Valley Tribune
Putnam center in peril Rio Hondo College's historic building is set for demolition

By Ben Kelly Staff Writer

WHITTIER - As one of the founders of Rio Hondo Community College, 80-year-old Bill Meardy remembers attending the first student council meeting inside the 12-sided, window-walled Putnam Student Center.

"There's probably no other building like it in the state of California, or probably in the nation," he said. "This building is so beautiful, they put two pictures (of it) on the class schedule for 2006." But now Meardy is waging a lone battle to save the Putnam building from the wrecking ball. The college plans to demolish the center next semester to pave the way for a new library/learning resource center.

Though the circular building's pink and white paint is fading, Meardy said the Putnam Center is the gem of the college and must be spared. Its design is unlike the International Style architecture of the surrounding buildings - square and simple, he said. It was the only campus facility not built by the college's original architect. But Andy Howard, executive director of planning and development at Rio Hondo College, said the building's round shape has made for poor acoustics and rendered it impractical for offices. More important, Howard said, building the new resource center on any other part of the hilltop campus "would have cost many millions more because of slope stabilization and other technical requirements." "It promises to be one of the most popular places on campus," Howard said of the new resource center. "The location will bring new energy to the lower part of the campus, which is currently underused. "It will be flanked by a new classroom building and a fine arts center with outdoor gathering spaces for students to eat or just hang out," Howard added. "Plus, the (college's master plan) creates convenient ways for the public to access this area."

But that's not enough to convince Meardy, who said, "I'll fight it until the wrecking ball hits - and I'm afraid the wrecking ball is not too far away." Howard said the Putnam Center was featured in two photos on this year's schedule of classes because one photo was taken when the college opened, while the other was more recent. "It was used because it showed an interesting comparison of the changes in student attire and styles during those 40 years," Howard said. But as for its demolition, officials said the Putnam Center was the only logical choice for a new library.

"Unfortunately, the train has left the station," said college trustee Andre Quintero, adding that the project has been no secret; it has been in the works for more than a year. "We aired it out to the public. This is really late in the game to say, `We want to save this facility.' We have limited space on the campus to build," Quintero said. "It's going to service so much more for the campus. We really need to move forward." The resource center will have computer, reading, writing and tutoring labs, as well as a high-tech training center for faculty and staff. It will also feature conference rooms and multimedia classrooms, with both floors scheduled to have wireless and wired Internet connectivity. The college qualified for a state grant of nearly $30 million in 2004 to build the library/learning resource center, about the same time that voters approved a $245 million Measure A facilities bond for the college. But the college will likely have to dip into Measure A funds to complete construction of the resource center because of the rising cost of construction, which is set to begin in the fall.

Although the building bearing his name will likely be torn down, the memory of Dr. Phil Putnam, Rio Hondo's first elected superintendent, will continue to be honored on campus, college President Rose Marie Joyce said. "I can see why they would be sensitive to honoring Dr. Putnam and we will be doing that," she said, adding that officials are weighing naming another part of the campus after Putnam. For Meardy, that's not enough. "There has to be a better place to build that building," he said. "I appear to be the only one that's concerned about it. I don't understand it."

-RHC-


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