Several renovations to older buildings at Cape Fear Community College will take place in the coming years.

With the completion of new construction both at the college's downtown and north campuses, CFCC is now turning its focus to upfitting many of the older downtown buildings, said David Kanoy, director of capital projects for the college.

"For a long time, our focus has been on building new spaces ... and that's all pretty much done now," he said. "Now we are going back to our existing buildings and there are several different things happening."

Kanoy said the new construction at the CFCC campus has "set a certain standard ... and we want to make sure all of the spaces get as close to that new-building standard as we can."

Project officials are also working to turn vacated spaces at the college -- open from programs that have moved to new buildings -- into the right places for other programs that will move in, he said.

Designs are almost complete, as well as the permitting process, for renovations to the nearly 29,000-square-foot W Building, which houses Cape Fear's culinary program, as well as its marine technology and boat building programs. The building, off Water Street in downtown Wilmington, has some parts that date back to the 1970s, he said.

"There have been a few little things done here and there, but overall the uses have changed," Kanoy said of the building. "And we just need to basically go through and get everything in better shape."

The $2.15 million project will take 1,800 square feet that was formerly used by the college's Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) program, and add it to the culinary program, in order to construct a new dining room, bar training area, wait station and new bathrooms.

"We've got a better separation from the kitchen and the cleanup areas. The bathrooms will be new and a little bit bigger. So it's definitely going to have a restaurant feel -- you will have a taller ceiling ... and [it will] be more open and airy [with] more natural light," Kanoy said of the planned space.

The HVAC program moved last year to the new Advanced & Emerging Technologies facility, which is one of several new constructions have opened at CFCC's North Campus.

Renovations to the W Building, or the Emmart/Burnett Building, that will house the marine technology and boat building programs include cosmetic upgrades, bringing bathrooms and stairs up to code and replacement of the building's HVAC system. There will be some new additions to the space as well, such as safety showers and eyewash stations in the labs. The marine instrumentation lab is also being relocated within the W Building.

An estimated completion date has not yet been announced for the project, but it's slated to begin in May, according to college officials. 

At the same time as the W Building project, the renovation will take place at the K Building, the auto body building at Third and Walnut streets. Design and permitting is nearly complete, Kanoy said. That project cost is $718,000.

"That was originally a Firestone Tire store and shop, that we use for auto body and that renovation -- there's some work on there to actually improve the exterior appearance because it's tired as well," he said. "And it's right on Third Street. We don't want to have a big CFCC sign and then an older building that could use work."

The college is also in the process of hiring an architect for renovating the A Building, or Galehouse Building, which is the original 1967 building at 411 N. Front. St., he said.

"That's going to be a substantial renovation ... ," he said.

Currently underway is the $4.2 million renovation at the Schwartz Center, 601 N. Front St., which includes several upgrades as well as a 6,200-square-foot addition to the building that will house new locker rooms and a team/multi-purpose room. The building is scheduled for completion in January 2019.

Some building updates have already been completed at the campus as well, Kanoy said, such as a light renovation to CFCC's K Building, being used for automotive teaching space and the college's PE program.