College Area Pregnancy Services (CAPS) opened the doors to its new facility at 1856 Garnet Ave. in Pacific Beach on Nov. 7. The nonprofit organization, which has operated on El Cajon Boulevard for 10 years, branched out to include a second location because of the number of students who reside in Pacific Beach and travel to the college area for pre-natal care and counseling. Located in a previously-abandoned building in a strip mall on Garnet Avenue, CAPS received $117,000 worth of donated time, labor and services for the construction of the new facility. “We really depend on people who want to give, and that’s exactly what happened,” said Julie Niven, executive director of CAPS. “A lot of people came together to work on it, and it was a really great experience.” Construction involved a complete renovation of the interior of the building shell, including sound insulation and some exploratory demolition. Erickson-Hall Construction donated construction management services to the project, which was initially expected to cost $157,000. The actual cost of construction cost was $40,000 after the materials and labor were donated. Dave Erickson, co-owner of Erickson-Hall, served as the project executive, and colleagues said he saw the project as something that was necessary for a cause that was close to his heart. Erickson-Hall specializes in civic buildings, and has built several fire stations, schools and churches. CAPS, which relies on volunteer doctors and nurses, offers free medical care and counseling for couples facing unplanned pregnancies as well as STD testing and screening. Niven said the services are important for young women who aren’t sure what kind of medical care they need at the beginning of their pregnancies. “A lot of women don’t think they can get care early on because they don’t have insurance,” said Niven. “They are often stuck not knowing what to do.”