The District celebrated the completion of the New Headquarters Building with a Grand Opening ceremony on August 23rd (see pictures). The Grand Opening marks the completion of a project that began with a decision by the Board of Commissioners a number of years ago to move forward to replace the aging and outdated facilities on the main campus on 1st Avenue South. Also replaced was the Lakehaven Center, a manufactured structure located adjacent to French Lake Dog Park used primarily for meetings of the Board of Commissioners for over thirty years.
The ceremony was attended by District Board members and staff as well as local elected officials and staff representatives from other agencies. District General Manager John Bowman opened the dedication with an overview of the history of the Project. He thanked all that had participated in it since its inception. Project Manager Ken Miller provided information about the improvements and recognized the extensive collaboration between the architect, contractor and many subcontractors that worked on the Project as a key to keeping the work moving forward. Jeff Blachowski of Helix Group, the principal architects on the Project, thanked the District and others for the cooperative partnership on the new facilities. The last to speak was Elliot Bosch of Lydig, Inc., the General Contractor/Construction Manager on the Project. He also thanked all that had devoted their time and talents to make this such a successful undertaking.
A reception was held in the main lobby of the new building following the ribbon cutting.
