Mystery donor funds college project

OCC students and faculty with elementary-aged children can breathe a sigh of relief, as construction has begun on a new classroom for the school’s after-school child-care program. But they can’t thank their biggest single donor, who gave $250,000. He remained anonymous, officials said.

A problem finding enough space was growing dire at the campus’ Harry and Grace Steele Children’s Center, officials said. For the first time since it opened, the complex didn’t have room for its after-school program.

“We haven’t had the space,” said Susan Bierlich, Children’s Center director, in a statement. “We’ve been waiting for this building for eight years.”

The center has been offering child care to the children of OCC students and faculty for decades, and the current building has been around for 10 years. But that structure was built without a classroom to take care of elementary-aged kids after school, college spokeswoman Mary Roda said.

“The plan was to build this all along,” Roda said.

The 2,300-square-foot building will hold a kitchen for children’s cooking projects and a stage area for theater. Right outside will be the center’s garden, where children learn to grow fruits and vegetables, officials said.

The problem wasn’t so much the fundraising as the cost to build it all, OCC Foundation Director Doug Bennett said. The project had to go out to bid four times before the price was right, he said. The bad economy may have helped, he said.

“The fourth bid was the final one we accepted,” Bennett said. “We got caught in the escalation of construction prices.

“That has dropped off in the last six months or so, and we got a lower bid than last time.”

The project will cost roughly $1 million. The anonymous donor is “an individual from the Newport Beach Costa-Mesa community,” Bennett said. “He just didn’t want his name out there.”

Construction is expected to finish by August, officials said.