Butler County Community College has received $2.2 million toward the construction of a new $4.5 million satellite location in Ford City, Armstrong County, college officials announced Thursday.

A $1.7 million Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant spearheaded by state Rep. Jeff Pyle, R-60th, a $250,000 pledge from the Armstrong County board of commissioners and $220,000 in private commitments will support the facility, which will replace the five-year-old building a half-mile away in Manor Township. The new facility, necessitated by a 426 percent enrollment increase at the Ford City campus, will be about 12,500 square feet in size.

The new BC3 @ Armstrong location will be built at the site of the former Ford City Junior-Senior High School, which was razed in 2018.

“I think what I am most proud of is the absolutely great public-private partnership,” said Nick Neupauer, BC3 president. “You have state dollars, you have private dollars and you have a local commitment from the county commissioners.”

He said the location also has historical value and is in the heart of Ford City. “We might even have some students who will move to Armstrong County to get the full overall college experience,” Neupauer said, “and the benefit of BC3 is that we will be helping businesses with their workforce.”

The single-story BC3 @ Armstrong location will house about four classrooms, a multipurpose room, natural science laboratory, student meeting space, and staff and faculty offices.

Groundbreaking could begin in the summer, and the facility could open by fall 2022, said Brian Opitz, BC3's executive director of operations.