LaSalle College moves to new Yaletown location

LaSalle College opened the doors to its new Yaletown campus for a media tour today (September 4).

With the move from LaSalle's original West Pender location to a heritage building at 101 Smithe Street, the fashion and design school increases its student capacity from 100 to 400.

"The government of British Columbia has taken a really strong exmphasis on job training and this fits very well into what we're doing," said Vancouver-False Creek MLA Sam Sullivan, who was on hand for the event. "I'm so proud to see our city on the map with this very prestigious school."

The school's five-story building, originally constructed in 1911, has been restored and retrofitted with an emphasis on creativity and environment.

Specialized classrooms, including a jewellery lab, computer labs, and a photo studio, are all bathed in bright natural light, while designated student workspaces offer panoramic views of downtown Vancouver and beyond.

Campus director Diego Do Livramento said the opening "offers a new era for a student-centred learning environment" and would help the campus "attract an increasingly international student body".

The Vancouver location is part of the LaSalle College International network, which offers courses to 10,000 students on 21 campuses in 11 countries world-wide.

"We look forward to the impact of the college on the look of our citizens; we expect everybody to be looking a lot nicer when you're through with us," Sullivan joked.