Construction has commenced for the $25.3 million Suncoast Technical Center-North Port and Shannon Staub Public Library, a collaborative project, in North Port, in Sarasota County.

Willis Smith Construction is the project’s general contractor, which has been designed by SchenkelShultz Architecture.

A SchenkelSchultz news release says groundbreaking ceremonies on Sept. 29 marked the official start of the latest career and technical education facility of Sarasota County Schools plus the newest addition to Sarasota County Libraries. The shared construction cost and use are the result of agreements among the School Board of Sarasota County, the Sarasota County Commission and the North Port City Commission. The two-story, 80,000-sq. ft. project is projected to open to the public in the fall of 2017.

Image: Rendering from SchenkelShultz