ADAMS COUNTY —The largest electrician-training trade association in the country is moving its headquarters from an industrial park in south Adams County to a former bowling alley in Northglenn this fall.
The Rocky Mountain section of Independent Electrical Contractors is the largest of 51 national chapters, and the school is bursting at the seams in its 15,000-square-foot building at 480 E. 76th Ave., where it has been for nearly 20 years.
“The driving force behind the move is our increased enrollment, and frankly we’re limited by the amount of parking that we have available in the current location,” said Marilyn Akers Stansbury, CEO of the Independent Electrical Contractors Rocky Mountain (IECRM).
There are about 1,000 electrician apprentices attending classes now, with enrollment projected to increase 20 to 40 percent this fall.
To foster that growth, the company bought a 23,000-square-foot building at 11429 Pearl St. in Northglenn for $1.3 million.
“We also needed to have additional lab space so that students get their hands on applications aligned to the curriculum, so that they are doing lab activities as the same time that they are studying a specific concept,” Akers Stansbury said. “We’ve experienced increased enrollment for the last five or six years, year over year.”
The boost in apprentices who enroll for up to four years to receive their electrician certification is a positive development to help close a growing gap of skilled contractors in the metro area, said Paul Lingo, the group’s training director.
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“A lot of Baby Boomers and Generation Xers got started in this career field early, and now they’re retiring,” he said. “The Department of Labor requires a particular ratio of state licensures to do electrical work. Right now it’s really lacking, and we’re finding that it’s diminishing each year as the population grows.”
But, he said: “Just in the last four years, we’ve received a maybe 40 percent increase in student enrollment. When I first started at IECRM as an instructor, I was the 13th instructor here — that was four years ago … In October, we will have 43 instructors, and we’re graduating 90 students this spring.”
Students pay between $587 and $912 per semester for tuition, according to the group’s website.
The renovation work in Northglenn includes new lab space for hands-on wiring practice, a conference center for partner companies and more administrative space.
“IECRM is making more than a $2.6 million investment in construction and new equipment to retrofit the building,” said Debbie Tuttle, economic development manager for Northglenn. “Their training program is invaluable and necessary to sustain economic growth in the metro area.”
The new building was vacant for a year before IECRM took it over in January. Before that, it was an AMF Sports Lanes from 1998 to 2002, and a dog daycare called Comfy Canine from 2010 to 2015.
“The building that IECRM purchased almost doubled their capacity for training opportunities,” Tuttle said. “Northglenn is centrally located, has excellent access from I-25 and is in close proximity from their previous location.”
Renovation work is slated to wrap up next month, with a grand opening in time for fall classes in August. This will be Northglenn’s first trade school.
The new location is also in a Northglenn urban renewal area.
“With all these new IECRM students and visitors, new sales tax dollars will be created through shopping and dining opportunities,” Tuttle said. “The program will provide job skills that will last a lifetime and help people earn a living wage, while simultaneously increasing the supply of electricians needed. It’s truly win-win.”
The group also has a satellite campus in Loveland, which also is growing exponentially. Akers Stansbury said there are preliminary plans to expand the company’s ability to house students there.
“There is a shortage of skilled trades in general, but particularly in electricians,” Akers Stansbury said. “At IECRM, we are training the next generation of electricians … and this expansion into Northglenn is an exciting step toward that growth.”
Megan Mitchell: 303-954-2650, mmitchell@denverpost.com or @Mmitchelldp
