Escrow on the 1.79-acre site on Civic Drive between Burnside Road and Division Street is due to close by month's end with a $700,000 price tag. The proposed 58,000 sf, three-story, steel-and-concrete structure is estimated to cost $8.5 million to build plus $3 million in soft costs such as architects and building permits. Completion of construction is scheduled for January 2003 with the first full slate of classes starting in Fall 2003.

"It's been wonderful because everyone has been committed to the idea," says Michelle Moore, chief financial officer for the Gresham-Barlow School District within which the new center will be located. "Purchasing the property and coming to an agreement on a site made it more difficult to find a central location everyone felt comfortable with."

When completed, the charter school facility will house 500 junior and senior high school students from all three school districts--Gresham-Barlow, Reynolds and Centennial. Courses will be available for community college students as well as offering training space for local businesses. The Community Television station will have a permanent home at the site, utilizing about one-third of the space for offices, studios, and equipment.