Chancellor Rebecca Blank addressed a group of stakeholders regarding the Babcock Hall project, thanking them for their past and future involvement and noting the importance of dairy to both the state and the university.

Mike Lehman reported that after much hard work and collaboration over several weeks, the project is essentially within budget (although exact figures will not be known until the project goes out for bid in April) and there is consensus on design and equipment.

Lyle Clem of Electrol Specialties presented the current building design concept plans in which the Babcock Dairy Plant has a north-south orientation on the first floor of the current Babcock Hall and CDR occupies a three-story addition on the west side of the building. The building will have 73,000 square feet of new and renovated space —  this is roughly a 15,000-square-foot reduction from the project maximum size, but is still larger than the 64,000 square feet included in the RFP and can be aligned with the budget. Mike Green of GFS, a food safety expert, helped in planning for food safety and product flow.

Finally, CALS Dean Kate VandenBosch noted that she will continue to provide regular updates to the stakeholders as the project moves forward toward 100% design and then is sent out for bid by the state Division of Facilities Development.

Milestone date: October 4, 2016