Well, almost a year has passed since the ground breaking ceremony for the new "Rod Shippey Building" here at the UC Hopland Research & Extension Center.    Actually, it has been over a year since construction began by contractor REWEST.   As with any construction project, there are "ups and downs", but for the most part the year was filled with "ups".  

A huge teamwork effort amongst UC staff, REWEST contractor and sub-contractors, architects, private vendor in-kind donations, volunteer "steering committees", and others, has resulted in a fabulous building designed for science and extension work.  It is a building that the North Coast community and the University can be very proud of.

Here you see REWEST Superintendent Jay Giles (on-site foreman), who kept the project and sub-contractors on schedule, celebrating under the donated 12-foot fan on his last day of work at Hopland.   The "big fan" is symbolic for "big plans" of future work and learning at the new facility.