Parking garage to be built at Ozarks Tech

Last edited 2:05 p.m., Jan. 23, 2026 [Editor's note: An estimated completion date was incorrect and has been removed.]

A parking garage is in the works at Ozarks Technical Community College.

Speaking Jan. 20 at Springfield Business Journal's People You Need to Know event, Ozarks Tech Chancellor Hal Higdon said the planned parking garage at the college's Springfield campus is estimated to cost around $7 million. Rob Rector, executive vice chancellor of administrative services, said in response to a question from Higdon that the project would cost around $30,000 per space.

"We're in a very tight constraint. We have National on one side, Chestnut on the other side, Drury on the other side, Silver Springs Park on the other side," Higdon said. "We cannot go past where we are. We can't go out; we're going to have to go up."

The college executives estimated the parking garage would take two to three years to build.

Amy Bacon Peebles, chief of staff to the chancellor and executive director of the Ozarks Tech Foundation, said via email that the college is considering three locations for the parking garage. The possible locations are along Chestnut Expressway near Graff Hall; in the surface parking lot just north of the Information Commons; and on the north side of campus between Central Street and Pythian Street.

"We have not yet designed the structure or hired an architect or contractor," Peebles added, noting the number of spots in the parking garage would be determined once a final location is secured.

Given the estimates of a $7 million project cost and $30,000 per space, that amounts to roughly 233 parking spots.

On the south side of the Springfield campus, Ozarks Tech is targeting a summer 2026 opening for the $35.8 million, 100,000-square-foot Michael L. Parson Student Union, according to past reporting. 

Higdon said at the SBJ event this week that the facility nicknamed The U would create opportunities elsewhere on campus for additional parking.

"Frankly, we're looking at more parking," he said, noting the potential "to maybe take some buildings that are older to give us more parking."