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School also closing Enka campus building
From Staff Reports
As Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College tries to balance its budget and make up an expected shortfall in state dollars, the school announced plans in early June to eliminate some of its workforce.
In addition, A-B Tech announced June 22 that it will close the Haynes building on the college’s Enka campus by the end of September. The move could allow the college to eventually sell the Enka property.
The Board of Trustees also voted June 22 to make plans to close the Technology Commercialization Center, which houses the small business incubator and the Craft Beverage Institute on the Enka campus.
That building, however, will remain open while college officials try to find a new location for the programs housed there.
Closing the Haynes building this year could help with a shortfall in the budget, schools officials said. The Haynes building closure will save about $540,000, according to A-B Tech President Dennis King.
The college has been grappling with a reduction in county funding since the 2013-14 fiscal year, when county funding was slashed by $2 million.
The state funds A-B Tech based on student enrollment, which has dropped by about 4 percent.
At the time of the early June announcement, the state budget had not been completed, but the school said it is anticipating a reduction of about $1.7 million in funding for the upcoming fiscal year because of the decrease in the number of students.
In a June 1 meeting of the college Board of Trustees, King reviewed steps the school is taking to make up a $1.7 million shortfall.
Those steps included eliminating the positions of six employees. The college eliminated another four positions through attrition. In addition, A-B Tech reduced department budgets by 2 percent.
The college also recently announced the closing of a child care center on site.
A-B Tech received around $38.8 million in funding from the state this year.
The school also receives some money from Buncombe County, and school officials have asked the county to restore $2 million that was cut from the county portion of the budget two years ago.
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