Nearly 20 years after Milton first proposed a local post-secondary campus, which evolved into the Milton Education Village concept, progress is being made as Wilfrid Laurier University begins preparatory work for a permanent campus onsite.
This development follows years of planning and collaboration, as noted by Heidi Northwood, provost and vice-president of academic at WLU, during a presentation to council on Oct. 7.
“We've done so much work together since we received provincial approval back in June 2021, and that led to this year's opening on Sept. 5,” she said, referring to the interim Milton Academic Centre campus at 555 Industrial Dr.
“Now, we have around 90 students enroled in our inaugural computer science and psychology programs.”
As for the future campus at the MEV, foundational work is underway.
“That includes site development and earthworks,” said Jason Coolman, vice-president of advancement, adding that it also involves stormwater management, pond preparation and working with other landowners.
The MEV is located on a 400-acre land centred beside the Mattamy National Cycling Centre and will also be the future home of Conestoga College and a long-term care facility. Schlegel Villages has broken ground and started construction on phase one of their Villages of Ridgeview Court.
The Town envisions the areas as a mixed-use community that could accommodate at least 22,000 people and jobs by 2051. The plans include a 'main street' village centre and a neighbourhood centre with retail, housing, schools and parks.
At the meeting, Mayor Gord Krantz reflected on an early discussion about the plan in the late 2000s. “It's taken that long to make it happen,” Krantz said. “As I've said many times, anything that's worthwhile is worth taking your time doing it right. And I think we've done it right here.”
Renderings of the campus were shared by officials, showcasing what it could look like when fully developed by 2051, featuring state-of-the-art buildings across the campus, vibrant transit access and living laboratories focused on storm water management.
For 2025, the university plans to offer a business technology management program, followed by software engineering the following year.
“These four programs… will build momentum for student recruitment and growth, and also, get the word out there further that Laurier Milton is open,” said Northwood. “We have an opportunity to grow the number of students to 2,500 in the future.”