Iowa Central has big plans for new SL campusFirst of multiple buildings ICCC has planned

The ribbon was cut Wednesday morning at Iowa Central Community College’s new Storm Lake training center, the first of multiple facilities the school plans to build at the city’s north industrial park.

The $2.8 million center approved by ICCC’s Board of Directors in 2019 offers trade courses in areas like welding, metal fabrication, industrial mechanics and more — all suited to serve Storm Lake’s large base of blue-collar employers. Workshops, several welding bays, small meeting rooms and large classrooms can be found inside.

“This facility is the start of something special in regards to centralizing all of our (local) services in Storm Lake,” said President Jesse Ulrich, an Iowa Central and Buena Vista University alumnus. “This is not going to be the only building when it’s all said and done that’s sitting on this property. So it’s very exciting.”

As Ulrich noted, Iowa Central officials are not stopping with the training center. The college owns the 12 acres surrounding the new facility and has long-range plans to construct three more education buildings and, possibly several years from now, student housing.

Ulrich said Storm Lake is a priority for Iowa Central. For starters, it’s one of the few cities in the state — especially in western Iowa — gaining population. The college also has long-established relationships with both Storm Lake Community School District and BVU.

“Storm Lake is important to us,” Ulrich said. “It makes sense for us to be investing in Storm Lake, centralizing our operations here and continuing to grow with the community.”

Creating a centralized campus on Business Hwy. 71 would eventually allow Iowa Central to vacate space occupied across multiple Storm Lake locations: the existing building attached to SLHS and at the Prairie Lakes AEA building on Flindt Drive.

Such a change could benefit the Storm Lake school district, which has seen its enrollment swell in recent years with no signs of slowing.

“Things like this and this building don’t happen without great partners, whether they are community partners, business partners, educational partners,” Ulrich said.

Chris Cleveland, director of Iowa Central’s Storm Lake center, said he is hopeful community organizations,  businesses and others will take advantage of the training center’s space to host gatherings and events of their own.

“This is your building — it’s the community’s building,” Cleveland said. “We want to see educational meetings and things like CPR classes being held here.”