New liberal arts institution Southern Catholic College contracted the HOK Planning Group, a landscape architectural and urban design firm based in Atlanta, to develop the master plan for a mixed-use pedestrian-oriented campus. A subsidiary of Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum Inc. of St. Louis, the HOK Planning Group designed a total community concept to support students, faculty and staff with facilities including residential, retail, academic, athletic, administrative, research, religious, office, hotel, and a conference center. The college's 210-acre main campus will include an 80-acre town center and will feature quadrangles and pedestrian pathways connecting collegiate Gothic-style buildings. $10-million of the required $34-million necessary for development and construction has been raised. Ground will be broken on the college in May, with the campus open for classes in fall of 2003. Master construction team The Beck Group of Dallas will build the new campus, with the first classroom and administration building to be erected by Opus South Corp. of Tampa, Fl. At the end of the project's 15-year building cycle, the initial enrollment of 150 students is slated to increase to 3,000.
