Des Moines Area Community College broke ground Tuesday on a new, $9 million DMACC Transportation Institute on Des Moines’ north side. The new facility will be named after DMACC alumnus and agribusiness executive Dennis Albaugh, who donated $1 million to the project. Additional funding includes a $1 million grant from the state of Iowa, a $500,000 donation from the Kent Corp. and a $50,000 donation from Bob and Jane Sturgeon. The two-phase project will begin with construction of a new, 8,600-square-foot building featuring classrooms, a three-story inspection bay and student study space. Additionally, the institute’s current 12-acre concrete training course, which is where students practice driving techniques, will be replaced. The project’s second phase will focus on tearing down the current DMACC Transportation Institute facility, which was built 35 years ago. According to a news release, the current DMACC Transportation Institute facility is aging, and has no capacity left to grow the number of students in the program. “The new building and training ground will allow us to double the program’s capacity and result in a significant increase in enrollment,” DMACC President Rob Denson said in a prepared statement. The institute will graduate 250 students this year, the release said. Founded in 1988, the DMACC Transportation Institute offers a three-week course that includes a 15-hour online theory class and a behind-the-wheel driving course. Iowa Department of Transportation testing is included for those who successfully complete the training.