After an eight-month delay to secure funding, a four-day design “charrette” began Monday for the new Luverne-Pipestone Minnesota National Guard Readiness Center.
Construction on the $16.5 million facility in Luverne is now expected to begin in the fall of 2020 and take 18 months to complete.
The predesign process began in mid-August and Monday’s meeting was the start of a four-day design charrette, an intensive planning session with citizens and other collaborators to develop a vision for the readiness center.
Those involved in the charrette briefing Monday at the Rock County Courthouse included not only representatives from the community but also representatives from the county, Minnesota National Guard, consultants and design firm TKDA from St. Paul.
“We want to explore design concepts and see what is best,” said project manager Jay Wiederholt with TKDA.
Foremost, the facility cannot exceed 47,902 square-feet or go over the budgeted $16.5 million for construction. Its design also has to meet federal energy standards, be simple in design and last at least 80 to 100 years.
The Luverne armory project financing is unique in nature due to state and federal funding as well as a private donation.
Retired Minnesota National Guard Brevet Colonel Warren G. Herreid II approached guard officials in early 2017 with a proposal to use private funds to assist in the construction of the new National Guard Armory in Luverne.
Herreid pledged $5 million.
A 15-acre site in the Luverne industrial park was chosen in October 2017.
Designing of the facility is expected to take a year to complete.
The charrette wraps up today (Sept. 12) and is one part of the nine-week predesign period that began in mid-August and concludes next month.
The predesign is followed by a 10-week schematic design process, then a 12-week design development stage followed by a 22-week construction document preparation stage.
Bidding is a six-week process starting in August 2020. Construction is scheduled to begin in October 2020 and finish in May 2022.