Valley National Bank Donates to New LCC Dorm

Valley National Bank in Lamar has donated $60,000 towards construction of the first of three planned residency pods for Lamar Community College. “This is an outstanding donation from the bank,” said LCC President John Marrin, Monday, April 21, at the bank’s office on South 4th Street.

Marrin said the donation will go a long way to the construction costs of the 14 unit dorm, planned to house 28 students. He estimated the cost to be about $950,000 with the building at $650,000 and the infrastructure at $300,000. Marrin said earlier that increased dorm space will allow enrollment to continue to grow at the college. He’s also made requests to the city and the county for in-kind contributions for infrastructure construction which would help keep overall costs down.

Ann Marie Crampton, president of the LCC Foundation, also voiced appreciation for the bank’s donation. Marrin said he believed the college could break ground on the new dorm in January if donations continue for the project, allowing construction to start, while the balance of the costs are still being sought. Those donations to date are in excess of $100,000. He said if events continue as planned, the new residence could be ready for occupancy by the fall of 2015. Crampton said the college was told the Boettcher Foundation is also contributing $25,000 towards the dorm project. Denise Carder, marketing director for Valley National Bank, said the firm is happy to be able to make the contribution which will enable enrollment to continue to increase at LCC.

By Russ Baldwin