CREDIT: DIAMOND SCHMITT ARCHITECTS
The modern design will be a unique addition to the historic Kingsmill building and will support the expansion and development of downtown London.

Fanshawe president Peter Devlin was excited to announce the beginning of Phase II of the Fanshawe College Downtown Expansion project on Jan. 15.

“I can hardly wait…I’m inspired by the level of excitement for Fanshawe Downtown Phase II,” Devlin said.

The new building will host the schools of tourism, hospitality and information technology. The building will bring over 2,000 Fanshawe students to the downtown area.

This is the most expensive project Fanshawe has taken part in, costing a total of $66 million. MainStreet London contributed a $19 million grant and the London Downtown Business Association donated another $1 million. The City of London approved a $9 million grant in 2014 after it was rejected the first time.

Fanshawe President Peter Devlin was also happy to announce a $500,000 donation to the project was made by Andy and Helen Spriet to the culinary school, a part of the School of Tourism and Hospitality.

“What I hope is that the Spriet family will inspire and motivate others to believe in what Fanshawe College does to also share kindness, resources and generosity with Fanshawe,” Devlin said.

London Mayor Matt Brown also attended the event, along with Joel Adams from MainStreet London, MP London North Centre Peter Fragiskatos, MP London-Fanshawe Irene Mathyssen and more.

Adams was particularly supportive of the downtown expansion project, and said that expanding downtown London will only have a positive impact on the city.

“If you had a machine that when you put one dollar in $10 came out, when would you stop?” Adams said.

The new building is scheduled to be open in 2018. Devlin said there have been no construction delays and that construction remains on schedule.